Foreign medical graduates lose one way to stay in U.S.

Experts worry rural health care will suffer if these physician applicants are not granted visa waivers.

By Damon Adams, AMNews staff. April 22/29, 2002. Correction

Rural health leaders and members of Congress are fighting to keep from losing foreign doctors who are willing to work in underserved areas of the United States.

They are lobbying the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture to reverse its February decision to quit participating in a program that allows foreign medical residents to stay here after completing their training.

Since 1994, the USDA had provided recommendation letters to the U.S. Dept. of State on behalf of foreign medical residents seeking exemption from an immigration law requiring them to return home for two years at the end of their medical residencies. Th

But the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks prompted reviews of the J-1 visa waiver program, and the USDA said security concerns were raised about physician applicants because the agency said it did not have the authority to conduct adequate background c

Meanwhile, investigations into fraud and other criminal conduct revealed an apparent scheme of false applications for about 160 physicians already in the United States, the agency said. The security concerns and investigations were enough for the USDA

"There continue to be some investigations concerning fraud," said USDA spokeswoman Alisa Harrison. [...]