Nehls Introduces Bill to Address Nationwide Doctor Shortage

Representative Troy Nehls (R-TX) has introduced a bipartisan bill known as the Districting Our Our Country’s Transfer of Residency Slots (DOCTORS) Act. The legislation, additionally sponsored by Representative Brad Schneider (D-IL), looks to account for the nationwide shortage of doctors and physicians.

It will do so by reappropriating unused waivers from the Conrad 30 (30 waivers per state) waiver program to states that have met their maximum waiver limit.

Moreover, the Conrad 30 program allows foreign-born doctors to bypass returning to their home country as long as they “agree to practice medicine for three years in a Health Professional Shortage Area, Medically Underserved Area, or Medically Underserved Population," according to the Nehls press release.

Rep. Nehls provided a comment regarding the bill.

“Since 2009, over 50 waivers have been given to foreign-born medical school graduates to practice in counties in my district,” said Congressman Nehls. “That’s 50 more doctors, who specialize in areas including anesthesiology, cardiology, infectious disease, internal medicine, neurology, pediatrics, psychiatry, radiology, transplants, urology, and more. Reclaiming unused waivers from the previous fiscal year is a simple, common-sense approach to address the critical nationwide physician shortages, without increasing the number of visas. I’m proud to introduce this critical bipartisan legislation with my colleague, Congressman Schneider, to assist our rural and underserved communities.”

Representative Schneider gave his thoughts as well, mentioning that the DOCTORS Act is a “commonsense measure” to address the physician shortage.

“Our nation faces a critical shortage of physicians, especially in rural and medically underserved communities,” said Congressman Schneider. “I’m proud to build on my previous efforts to encourage highly skilled, foreign-born medical graduates to practice medicine in the areas of the country that need it most. The DOCTORS Act is a commonsense measure to ensure unused Conrad 30 waivers don’t go to waste, rather that they help offset physician shortages in states who utilize the program the most. This bill would help us ensure that all Americans, regardless of demographic, have access to high-quality health care providers.”

Original cosponsors include Representatives Elise Stefanik (R-NY), Don Davis (D-NC), David Valadao (R-CA), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), Maria Salazar (R-FL), Terri Sewell (D-AL), Clay Higgins (R-LA), Sean Casten (D-IL), Ashley Hinson (R-IA), Andrea Salinas (D-OR), Bill Pascrell (D-NJ), Ami Bera (D-CA), Jim Costa (D-CA), and Vicente Gonzalez (D-TX).