One hundred bipartisan members of the U.S. Congress sent a letter on February 11 asking Kristi Noem, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, to exempt the healthcare industry from the recently enacted H-1B visa application fee of $100,000. This comes as the fee might exacerbate the physician shortage in America and limit access to healthcare services.
The letter states that the many hospitals and clinics that rely heavily on foreign-trained medical professionals will face a significant financial burden due to the large application fee imposed on H-1B visa applications, especially in rural and underserved areas.
Why this is important
In September 2025, President Trump issued a proclamation that imposed an unnecessary fee of $100,000 on each new H-1B visa application. The federal government has the ability to exempt certain industries from the fees, but to date, the healthcare sector has not qualified for such an exemption.
This unprecedented fee will impede the ability of hospitals to recruit physicians, nurses, lab technicians, and researchers at a time when the number of available personnel in the United States is already at critically low levels. According to the Health Resources and Services Administration, approximately 87 million Americans live in an area without enough healthcare professionals.
The two Members of Congress heading this new legislation effort are Reps. Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY) and Michael Lawler (R-NY), with assistance from bipartisan Congressional support from multiple states and both houses of Congress.
The new fee proposed under the rule change follows increased political pressure to reign in the H1-B visa program. Recently, Congressman Greg Steube (R-FL) introduced the EXILE Act, which proposes to completely eliminate the H-1B visa program.
What the lawmakers are saying
In their recent letter sent to Congress, the lawmakers expressed concern that imposing the new $100,000 fee would create additional financial hardship to the hospitals who are already facing difficulties.
“Imposing a $100,000 fee will create further hardships in recruiting and ultimately result in positions that are critically needed remaining unfilled,” said the legislators. “This will particularly hurt rural hospitals and other safety-net hospitals.”
Additionally, the legislators pointed out that over the history of the law, healthcare employers have utilized the H-1B program as a tool for recruiting internationally and keeping the United States as a leader in health care technology and innovation for over 30 years.
The legislators believe that simply using domestic resources to try to fulfill the growing workforce shortage will not be enough to fill the gap between the number of job openings and number of applicants for healthcare professional jobs.
In support of the appeal, major industry organisations like the American Hospital Association and Association of American Medical Colleges have shown their support for these initiatives.
According to hospital leaders, the H-1B visa program is critical to the maintenance of services in areas of high poverty and in isolated communities.
Ken Raske from the Greater New York Hospital Association has mentioned how dependant many hospitals are on the contribution of international professionals in order to provide high-quality patient care, to train future doctors, and ultimately to support advanced research.
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Why it matters for Indian professionals
The H-1B visa has provided many opportunities for US employers to employ foreign-trained professionals in their dental/ medical/ rehabilitation/ research communities. The vast majority of Indian nationals successfully applying for these jobs are providing high quality patient care, working in the Technology, and Science research sectors.
Healthcare Leaders are concerned that placing limitations on access to these workers will result in a weakened system and a delay in the care provided patients.
At this point, the US Department of Homeland Security is under increasing pressure to allow the expansion of the exemption request to a much broader sector within the healthcare profession. If granted, employers in healthcare will be able to avoid paying the $100,000 fee for international recruiters.
If denied, hospitals may face a reduction in hiring or limit the number of services provided or possibly pass on these expenses; at a time where there is an increasing demand for healthcare services in the US, this would further the current crisis.
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