Foreign medical residents fill critical positions at US hospitals, but are running into visa issues

Guno צְבִי

We fight, We win, Am Yisrael Chai
Some hospitals in the U.S. are without essential staff because international doctors who were set to start their medical training this week were delayed by the Trump administration's travel and visa restrictions.

It's unclear exactly how many foreign medical residents were unable to start their assignments, but six medical residents interviewed by The Associated Press say they’ve undergone years of training and work only to be stopped at the finish line by what is usually a procedural step.

 
“I don’t want to give up,” said a permanent Canadian resident who matched to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Harrisburg but had her visa denied because she is a citizen of Afghanistan. She requested to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal. “But the situation also seems so helpless.”

Initially, the medical community was worried that hundreds of positions — many in hospitals in low-income or rural areas of the U.S. — could be affected.
 
Thousands of foreign medical residents fill gaps in U.S. hospitals

The U.S. is projected to face a physician shortage in the next 11 years, per the Association of American Medical Colleges, and foreign medical residents fill critical gaps in the health care system. More than 6,600 foreign-born international medical residents matched into U.S. programs in 2025 — the highest on record — and another 300 filled positions that were vacant after the match process was complete.
 
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