Monday, November 13, 2006  

AHA PUSHES FOR PASSAGE OF SKIL ACT DURING LAME DUCK SESSION 

The American Hospital Association, a group not normally thought of as one involved with immigration advocacy, is pushing for passage of the SKIL Act, a bill which would open up more H-1B visas for physicians and more green card numbers for nurses and doctors. In the AHA's daily email news alert, the organization issued the following statement:

The AHA today joined a coalition of health care, education and business groups in calling on Congress to act during the lame duck session to pass the Securing Knowledge Innovation and Leadership bill (S. 2691/H.R. 5741), which would address shortages in H-1B visas and backlogs in the employment-based green card visa system. In a letter to all members of Congress, the coalition said
that the nation’s "outdated and counterproductive" visa policy is forcing "thousands of valued foreign-born professionals - including scientists, teachers, engineers and medical professionals - into legal and professional limbo for years. If we are serious about remaining the world’s innovation leader, we must fix our broken visa system and we urgently request your support for reform." The AHA backs the SKIL bill because it would remove nurses and physical therapists from the annual worldwide caps for skilled workers by designating them as "shortage occupations," making it easier for them to enter the U.S.

# posted by Greg Siskind @ 9:05 PM

NYT: FOREIGN STUDENT ADMISSIONS TO THE US FINALLY GOING UP 

The New York Times this morning reports that the number of F-1, J-1 and M-1 visas issued to foreign students has increased by 14% in the past year and a record 591,050 applications were approved. The annual Open Doors survey conducted by the Institute of International Education will be released today. The report also notes that more than half of 900 schools surveyed have seen foreign student enrollment increase this semester.

# posted by Greg Siskind @ 10:39 AM

REID SIGNALS DEMS READY TO MOVE ON IMMIGRATION REFORM IN THE SENATE 

Despite a Washington Post story that said the Democrats may not be so excited to move on immigration reform lest it affect their ability to maintain control in Congress in 2008, Senator Reid assured the country's Latinos that the Democrats heard their message on Tuesday. Indeed, exit polling data is now indicating that Hispanic voters probably had more to do with putting Democrats over the top than any other factor. The percentage of Hispanics voting increased substantially and the share of those votes going to Democrats also increased markedly.

Senator Reid issued the following statement Friday:

"Senate Democrats have heard Latino families’ message and are ready to deliver for them and all the American people. We need a better direction on
education, healthcare, economy, immigration, and Iraq to ensure a hopeful tomorrow for our nation.

"Democrats are committed to a number of key priorities including fixing our broken immigration system. Our country needs to strengthen security at our borders, bring millions of undocumented workers out of the shadows of our society, and restore the rule of law to our immigration system. Democrats look forward to working with Republicans to achieve real border security through bipartisan, tough, fair, and practical immigration reform."

# posted by Greg Siskind @ 10:05 AM