Bills Expand and Extend Conrad Program

The House Judiciary Committee passed a bill, H.R.4858, which would increases the number of physicians who can be sponsored for J waivers program from each state from 20 to 30 and would extend the "Conrad" program for another two year, from 2002 to 2004. The bill is expected to be voted upon by the House of Representatives as early as next week.

Meanwhile, in the Senate, Senator Brownback (R-KS) is supporting a bill (S. 1259) which would increase the number of physicians who can be sponsored for J waivers from each state from 20 to 40 and make the Conrad Program permanent.

Please click H.R. 4858 and S.1259 to read them in PDF format. If you have no Acrobat Reader to read this document in PDF format, please click here to download a free copy of Acrobat Reader from http://www.adobe.com.

The following are the House Bill H.R. 4858 and Senate Bill S.1259 in Text format:

107th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 4858

To improve access to physicians in medically underserved areas.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

June 4, 2002

Mr. Moran of Kansas (for himself, Mr. Towns, Mr. Stenholm, Mr.
McIntyre, and Mr. Houghton) introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To improve access to physicians in medically underserved areas.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. WAIVER OF FOREIGN COUNTRY RESIDENCE REQUIREMENT WITH RESPECT
TO INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL GRADUATES.

(a) Increase in Numerical Limitation on Waivers Requested by
States.--Section 214(l)(1)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8
U.S.C. 1184(l)(1)(B)) is amended by striking ``20;'' and inserting
``30;''.
(b) Extension of Deadline.--Section 220(c) of the Immigration and
Nationality Technical Corrections Act of 1994 (8 U.S.C. 1182 note) is
amended by striking ``2002.'' and inserting ``2004.''.
(c) Technical Correction.--Section 212(e) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(e)) is amended by striking ``214(k):''
and inserting ``214(l):''.
(d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take
effect as if this Act were enacted on May 31, 2002.
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107th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1259

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act with respect to the
admission of nonimmigrant nurses.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

July 27, 2001

Mr. Brownback (for himself, Mr. Graham, and Mr. Helms) introduced the
following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on
the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act with respect to the
admission of nonimmigrant nurses.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Rural and Urban Health Care Act of
2001''.

SEC. 2. REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION OF NONIMMIGRANT NURSES.

(a) Requirements.--Section 212(m) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(m)) is amended to read as follows:
``(m)(1) The qualifications referred to in the section
101(a)(15)(i)(c), with respect to an alien who is coming to the United
States to perform nursing services for a facility, are that the alien--
``(A) has obtained a full and unrestricted license to
practice professional nursing in the country where the alien
obtained nursing education, or has received nursing education
in the United States or Canada;
``(B) has passed the examination given by the Commission on
Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (or has passed another
appropriate examination recognized in regulations promulgated
in consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human
Services), or has a full and unrestricted license under State
law to practice professional nursing in the State of intended
employment; and
``(C) is fully qualified and eligible under the laws
(including such temporary or interim licensing requirements
which authorize the nurse to be employed) governing the place
of intended employment to take the State licensure examination
after entry into the United States, and the lack of a social
security number shall not indicate a lack of eligibility to
take the State licensure examination.
``(2)(A) The attestation referred to in section
101(a)(15)(H)(i)(c), with respect to a facility for which an alien will
perform services, is an attestation as to the following:
``(i) The employment of the alien will not adversely affect
the wages and working conditions of registered nurses similarly
employed at the facility.
``(ii) The alien employed by the facility will be paid the
wage rate for registered nurses similarly employed by the
facility.
``(iii) There is not a strike or lockout in the course of a
labor dispute, the facility did not lay off and will not lay
off a registered staff nurse who provides patient care and who
is employed by the facility within the period beginning 90 days
before and ending 90 days after the date of filing of any visa
petition for clarification of such an alien under section
101(a)(15)(H)(i)(c), and the employment of such an alien is not
intended or designed to influence an election for a bargaining
representative for registered nurses of the facility.
``(iv) At the time of the filing of the petition for
registered nurses under section 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(c), notice of
the filing has been provided by the facility to the bargaining
representative of the registered nurses at the facility or,
where there is no such bargaining representative, notice of the
filing has been provided to the registered nurses employed by
the employer at the facility through posting in conspicuous
locations.
``(v) The facility will not, with respect to any alien
issued a visa or otherwise provided nonimmigrant status under
section 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(c)--
``(I) authorize the alien to perform nursing
services at any worksite other than a worksite
controlled by the facility; or
``(II) transfer the place of employment of the
alien from one worksite to another.
``(B) A copy of the attestation shall be provided, within 30 days
of the date of filing, to registered nurses employed at the facility on
the date of filing.
``(C) The Secretary of Labor shall review an attestation only for
completeness and obvious inaccuracies. Unless the Secretary finds that
the attestation is incomplete or obviously inaccurate, the Secretary
shall certify the attestation within 7 calendar days of the date of the
filing of the attestation. If the attestation is not returned to the
facility within 7 calendar days, the attestation shall be deemed
certified.
``(D) Subject to subparagraph (F), an attestation under
subparagraph (A)--
``(i) shall expire on the date that is the later of--
``(I) the end of the three-year period beginning on
the date of its filing with the Secretary; or
``(II) the end of the period of admission under
section 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(c) of the last alien with
respect to whose admission it was applied (in
accordance with clause (ii)); and
``(ii) shall apply to petitions filed during the three-year
period beginning on the date of its filing with the Secretary
if the facility states in each such petition that it continues
to comply with the conditions in the attestation.
``(E) A facility may meet the requirements under this paragraph
with respect to more than one registered nurse in a single petition.
``(F)(i) The Secretary shall compile and make available for public
examination in a timely manner in Washington, D.C., a list identifying
facilities which have filed petitions for classification of
nonimmigrants under section 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(c) and, for each such
facility, a copy of the facility's attestation under subparagraph (A)
and each such petition filed by the facility.
``(ii) The Secretary shall establish a process, including
reasonable time limits, for the receipt, investigation, and disposition
of complaints respecting a facility's failure to meet conditions
attested to or a facility's misrepresentation of a material fact in an
attestation. Complaints may be filed by any aggrieved person or
organization (including bargaining representatives, associations deemed
appropriate by the Secretary, and other aggrieved parties as determined
under regulations of the Secretary, but excluding any governmental
agency or entity). The Secretary shall conduct an investigation under
this clause if there is probable cause to believe that a facility
willfully failed to meet conditions attested to. Subject to the time
limits established under this clause, this subparagraph shall apply
regardless of whether or not an attestation is expired or unexpired at
the time a complaint is filed.
``(iii) Under such process, the Secretary shall provide, within 180
days after the date such a complaint is filed, for a determination as
to whether or not a basis exists to make a finding described in clause
(iv). If the Secretary determines that such a basis exists, the
Secretary shall provide for notice of such determination to the
interested parties and an opportunity for a hearing on the complaint
within 60 days of the date of the determination.
``(iv) If the Secretary finds, after notice and opportunity for a
hearing, that a facility (for which an attestation is made) has
willfully failed to meet a condition attested to or that there was a
willful misrepresentation of material fact in the attestation, the
Secretary shall notify the Attorney General of such finding and may, in
addition, impose such other administrative remedies (including civil
monetary penalties in an amount not to exceed $1,000 per nurse per
violation, with the total penalty not to exceed $10,000 per violation)
as the Secretary determines to be appropriate. Upon receipt of such
notice, the Attorney General shall not approve petitions filed with
respect to a facility during a period of at least one year for nurses
to be employed by the facility.
``(v) In addition to the sanctions provided for under clause (iv),
if the Secretary finds, after notice and an opportunity for a hearing,
that a facility has violated the condition attested to under
subparagraph (A)(ii) (relating to payment of registered nurses at the
facility wage rate), the Secretary shall order the facility to provide
for payment of such amounts of back pay as may be required to comply
with such condition.
``(G)(i) The Secretary shall impose on a facility filing an
attestation under subparagraph (A) a filing fee in an amount prescribed
by the Secretary based on the costs of carrying out the Secretary's
duties under this subsection, but not exceeding $250.
``(ii) Fees collected under this subparagraph shall be deposited in
a fund established for this purpose in the Treasury of the United
States.
``(iii) The collected fees in the fund shall be available to the
Secretary, to the extent and in such amounts as may be provided in
appropriations Acts, to cover the costs described in clause (i), in
addition to any other funds that are available to the Secretary to
cover such costs.
``(3) The period of admission of an alien under section
101(a)(15)(H)(i)(c) shall be for an initial period not to exceed three
years, subject to an extension for a period or periods not to exceed a
total period of admission of six years.
``(4) A facility that has filed a petition under section
101(a)(15)(H)(i)(c) to employ a nonimmigrant to perform nursing
services for the facility--
``(A) shall provide the nonimmigrant a wage rate and
working conditions commensurate with those of nurses similarly
employed by the facility; and
``(B) shall not interfere with the right of the
nonimmigrant to join or organize a union.
``(5)(A) For purposes of paragraph (2)(A)(iii), the term `lay off',
with respect to a worker--
``(i) means to cause the worker's loss of employment, other
than through a discharge for inadequate performance, violation
of workplace rules, cause, voluntary departure, voluntary
retirement, or the expiration of a grant or contract; but
``(ii) does not include any situation in which the worker
is offered, as an alternative to such loss of employment, a
similar employment opportunity with the same employer at
equivalent or higher compensation and benefits than the
position from which the employee was discharged, regardless of
whether or not the employee accepts the offer.
``(B) Nothing in this paragraph is intended to limit an employee's
or an employer's rights under a collective bargaining agreement or
other employment contract.
``(6) For purposes of this subsection and section
101(a)(15)(H)(i)(c), the term `facility' includes a hospital, nursing
home, skilled nursing facility, registry, clinic, assisted-living
center, and an employer who employs any registered nurse in a home
setting.
``(7) Except as otherwise provided, in this subsection, the term
`Secretary' means the Secretary of Labor.''.
(b) Implementation.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Labor (in consultation, to the
extent required, with the Secretary of Health and Human Services) and
the Attorney General shall promulgate final or interim final
regulations to carry out section 212(m) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (as amended by subsection (a)) The amendments made by
this section shall take effect not later than 90 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, without regard to whether or not regulations
to carry out such amendments have been promulgated by such date.

SEC. 3. REPEAL.

Section 3 of the Nursing Relief for Disadvantaged Areas Act of 1999
(Public Law 106-95; 8 U.S.C. 1182 note; relating to recommendations for
alternative remedy for nursing shortage) is repealed.

SEC. 4. QUALIFICATION FOR CERTAIN ALIEN NURSES.

(a) Elimination of Certain Grounds of Inadmissability.--Section 212
of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182) is amended by
striking subsections (a)(5)(C) and (r).
(b) Procedure for Granting Immigrant Status.--Section 204(a)(1)(F)
of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154(a)(1)(F)) is
amended by adding at the end the following new sentence: ``Any such
petition filed on behalf of an alien who will be employed as a
professional nurse shall include evidence that the alien--
``(i) has passed--
``(I) the examination given by the
Commission on Graduates of Foreign
Nursing Schools (CGFNS); or
``(II) another appropriate
examination recognized in regulations
promulgated in consultation with the
Secretary of Health and Human Services;
or
``(ii) holds a full and unrestricted
license to practice professional nursing in the
State of intended employment.''.

SEC. 5. WAIVERS OF TWO-YEAR FOREIGN RESIDENCE REQUIREMENT.

(a) In General.--Section 214(l) of the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(l)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ``20'' and inserting
``40, plus the number of waivers specified in paragraph (4)'';
and
(2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(4) The number of waivers specified in this paragraph is the
total number of unused waivers allotted to all States for a fiscal year
divided by the number of States having no unused waivers remaining in
the allotment to those States for that fiscal year.''.
(b) Elimination of Termination Date.--Section 220(c) of the
Immigration and Nationality Technical Corrections Act of 1994 (Public
Law 103-416, as amended; 8 U.S.C.1182 note) is amended by striking
``and before June 1, 2002''.

SEC. 6. OTHER MEASURES TO MEET RURAL AND URBAN HEALTH CARE NEEDS.

(a) Grant Authority.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services
shall award grants to States, local governments, and institutions of
higher education (as defined in section 101(a) of the Higher Education
Act of 1965) to fund training, recruitment, and other activities to
increase the supply of domestic registered nurses and other needed
health care providers.
(b) Application.--
(1) In general.--Each eligible entity desiring a grant
under this section shall submit an application to the Secretary
of Health and Human Services at such time, in such manner, and
accompanied by such information as the Secretary may reasonably
require.
(2) Contents.--Each application submitted pursuant to
paragraph (1) shall--
(A) describe the activities for which assistance
under this section is sought; and
(B) provide such additional assurances as the
Secretary of Health and Human Services determines to be
essential to ensure compliance with the requirements of
this section.
(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to the Department of Health and Human Services such sums
as may be necessary to carry out this section.
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