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In June, President Bush signed an Executive Order requiring all organizations who do business with the federal government to use the E-Verify system for new employees, to ensure that the employees meet the legal requirements for employment.  This includes healthcare employers since they take Medicare.

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According to a new report conducted by HealthWorks, the Arizona Healthcare Workforce Data Center established by the Healthcare Institute at the Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association (AzHHA), Arizona will need approximately 49,000 new registered nurses by the year 2017. 

According to the report, factors contributing to the shortage are Arizona’s rapidly growing population and the large number registered nurses in Arizona who are close to retiring.  The number of nurses needed to address Arizona’s health care needs is as follows:

·                     20,000 will be needed to keep pace with the state’s growing population;

·                     10,000 will be needed to replace retiring nurses since one-third of the state’s nurses are older than 55; and

·                     19,000 will be needed to account for the profession’s attrition rate.  

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The Association of American Medical Colleges estimates that first-year enrollment in U.S. medical schools will grow 21% by 2012.  This growth is attributed to the fact that over 86% of U.S. medical schools have expanded the number of first-year students or plan to within the next five years.  Additionally nine new medical schools are expected to open, which would add almost 800 students in the 2012-2013 academic year.

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On April 8, 2008 USCIS announced that it received enough petitions to reach the H-1B caps for the 65,000 general cap and the 20,000 advanced degree cap.  USCIS will now hold a lottery to randomly select the petitions that will be counted against the caps and will return the petitions and filing fees of those cases not selected in the lottery. 

USCIS has stated that since it received so many applications, and is still inputting the data , it is not able to announce the exact day when the lottery will be held.  The lottery for the 20,000 advanced degree case will be held first, and any applications left over from the lottery will be included in the 65,000 general cap lottery.

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This past spring, Senator Kent Conrad (D-ND) introduced S.2672, the Conrad State 30 Improvement Act. The bill’s primary purpose is to extend the Conrad 30 J-1 waiver program for physicians. The Conrad 30 program begins to sunset in June of this year. S.2672 will make the following changes to physician immigration:

1. Extend the Conrad 30 program permanently;
2. Allow physicians who entered to train under H-1B visas to participate in the Conrad 30 program. Instead of getting a waiver of a requirement to return home (only J-1s are required to return home for two years), H-1B doctors choosing to work in underserved areas for three years under the Conrad program would get an exemption from the annual H-1B limit of 65,000 visas and also an exemption from the six year limit on H-1B time.
3. The Conrad program could grow beyond 30 in five slot increments if at least 90% of Conrad slots are used in one of the three prior years by all states using at least five Conrad slots in that year.
4. Physicians who complete service under the Conrad program shall be exempt from green card caps
5. The number of flex slots shall be increased from five to ten.

The bill did not ultimately pass, but another bill extending the Conrad 30 program until March 6, 2008 and doubling flex slots to 10 did pass in September and President Bush signed the bill into law in October.

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According to the American Hospital Association, a record 28,737 applicants participated in the National Resident Matching Program’s annual match day, which pairs American and foreign medical students with residency programs. Nearly half of the more than 10,300 applicants from foreign medical schools were matched with a program.

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According to a study by professors from the University of Massachusetts at Boston, Tufts University, and the University of California, Berkeley, immigrants currently comprise over a quarter of the healthcare workforce in Massachusetts in several key jobs, including pharmacists, medical scientists, and surgeons, according to an executive summary for a new statewide  The study also found that immigrants make up just 10 percent of registered nurses in Massachusetts.

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According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment in U.S. hospitals increased by 0.22% in January to 4,581,200 people.  According to BLS statistics, there were 10,000 more hospital employees in January than in December and 112,600 more employees than one year ago.

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CGFNS International has announced new pricing for its Credential Verification Service for New York State.  Effective January 1, 2008, CVS for New York will be $350, which includes a new $50 processing fee.

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ECFMG is currently seeking IMGs to serve on a voluntary basis as advisors for the IMG Advisors Network (IAN) for international medical graduates (IMGs).  To qualify as an advisor, you must:

·         be certified by ECFMG,

·         either be in or have completed training in an ACGME-accredited program in the United States,

·         be licensed to practice medicine (training or permanent license) in at least one state or jurisdiction in the United States,

·         have ready access to e-mail, and

·         be willing to reply to inquiries from advisees in an honest and timely manner.

IMGs who are new to the US who register with the IAN program will be able to search the IAN database for the advisors most likely to be helpful in providing information and advice about the United States.

If you are interested in becoming an IAN advisor or would like to learn if you are eligible to participate in IAN as an advisee, you can obtain more information by visiting http://ecfmg.org/acculturation/ian.html.

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International medical students/graduates, including participants/graduates of Fifth Pathway programs, who need to pass Step 2 Clinical Skills (CS) to participate in the 2009 Match (in March 2009) are strongly encouraged by ECFMG to take Step 2 CS by August 2008.

According to ECFMG, there is always a high demand for testing during the period from September through December.  In 2008, it is expected that the demand for testing during this period to be even higher than in past years.  To maximize the chance of obtaining a 2008 test date, ECFMG recommends applying for Step 2 CS immediately.

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ECFMG has announced that as of January 1, 2008, all watches will be banned from the testing area for Step 2 Clinical Skills (CS).

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ECFMG has introduced the ECFMG Medical School Web Portal (EMSWP), a free, web-based program that allows international medical schools to verify the status of their students and graduates who have applied to ECFMG for the USMLE.

Prior to EMSWP, ECFMG verified student status through a paper Certification Statement, completed by both the student and his or her medical school for each USMLE application. Now, a student whose medical school participates in EMSWP will not be required to submit a paper Certification Statement.  The student and his or her medical school will complete a paper Certification of Identification Form. Once accepted by ECFMG, the Certification of Identification Form remains valid for all exam applications submitted for the following five years. During this time, the student will be able to complete the exam application process entirely on-line using ECFMG's Interactive Web Application (IWA), and the medical school will verify the student's status on-line using EMSWP for each exam application.

A student whose medical school does not participate in EMSWP will still be required to complete a paper Certification Statement for each USMLE application.

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ECFMG’s Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) Support Services is now offering Return of Document Service (RODS), an optional service that allows international medical students and graduates participating in ERAS to request the return of eligible documents.