Immigrant Health Care Workers Needed for Elderly Care

A recent report by Brandeis University Professor Martin Leutz, which was released by the American Immigration Law Foundation, outlines the urgent need for more immigrants in nursing homes and other long term care facilities in order to meet a dramatically expanding patient population.  

Due to medical advances, the American elderly population is living longer.  However, because old age is associated with disabilities and chronic illnesses such as diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease, the increase in the number of elderly living longer lives requires a significant increase in healthcare support, such as orderlies, nursing aides, home health aides, etc.  

In addition to a larger elderly population, the need for more direct-care health support is also due to the high turnover in the direct-care workforce. Direct-care jobs tend to be very physically demanding, but are low-paid and have few benefits like health insurance and retirement plans.  

Immigration has long offset labor shortages in many different fields, including healthcare occupations.  However, current U.S. immigration law provides limited opportunities for foreign paraprofessionals to work in the U.S. on a temporary basis or to come here as permanent residents.  The U.S. currently offers more opportunities for skilled health care workers than it does for health care aides, who have fewer educational requirements.

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