YVN Summary
\n\nIf you live in an area short on doctors, this bill could bring more of them. It would restart the Conrad State 30 program, whose legal authority ran out in 2015. The program lets each state sponsor doctors from other countries who train here. Those doctors skip the usual rule that sends them home for two years. In return, they must work at least three years where the government says doctors are scarce. If your area already has enough doctors, you likely would not notice a change.\n\nEach state could sponsor 35 doctors a year, up from 30. The cap would grow by five more each year when states use about 90 percent of their slots. It could pass 45, and it would not drop below 30. States could also place up to three of these doctors a year at teaching hospitals. Those jobs would not have to be in a shortage area.\n\nThe bill also sets rules for these doctors' job contracts. A contract would have to list on-call hours, on-call pay, malpractice coverage, and every work site. Non-compete clauses would be banned. A doctor whose employer breaks labor law could switch jobs and keep the waiver. A doctor who quits by choice owes one more year of service. Doctors who finish the required service would not count against yearly green card limits. Their spouses and children would not either. A separate section drops the two-year return rule for the spouses and children of all exchange visitors, not just doctors.
","status":"COMMITTEE_CONSIDERATION","topics":["HEALTHCARE","GOVERNMENT_OPERATIONS"],"introducedAt":"2025-02-25T00:00:00+00:00","latestActionAt":"2025-02-25T00:00:00+00:00","congressGovUrl":"https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/709","accountabilityFlags":{"your_money":["↑ More doctors for shortage areas — 35 per state, up from 30"],"workers_jobs":["↓ Non-compete clauses banned — these doctors can switch jobs nearby","↑ On-call hours must be in writing — with pay and malpractice terms","↑ Doctors can leave law-breaking employers — new job within 120 days","↑ Quitting by choice adds service time — one extra year each time"],"civil_liberties":["↑ Green card limits waived — doctors who finished service, plus families","↑ Legal status continues after job loss — 120 days to find work","↑ Medical trainees can seek green cards — without risking their visa"],"targeted_provisions":["↑ Teaching hospitals get slots — 3 per state, outside shortage areas","↓ Two-year return rule dropped — exchange visitors' spouses and children"],"transparency_accountability":["↑ Program must be renewed again — three years after it becomes law","↑ Yearly report to Congress — doctor counts broken down by state"]},"tldr":"Keeps foreign doctors working in areas short on care, raises each state's cap to 35, and bans their non-compete clauses.","summaryStandard":"v2","flagExplainers":{"your_money":["Each state could sponsor 35 of these doctors a year instead of 30. The cap could climb by five more each year if states keep using their slots, and it would never fall below 30."],"workers_jobs":["Section 4 says the employment agreement cannot include a non-compete clause. A doctor who leaves the job could take another one nearby instead of moving away.","The contract must state the most on-call hours per week and what the doctor is paid for that time. It must also say who covers malpractice claims and list every site the doctor will work.","The doctor may leave early if the employer broke the contract or broke labor laws. Homeland Security or the state must agree, and the doctor gets 120 days to find a new job in a shortage area.","A doctor who quits without such a finding has 45 days to find another job in the same state. That doctor must serve the rest of the three years, plus one extra year for each time they quit."],"civil_liberties":["Some doctors get a visa waiver by promising five years of work in a shortage area. Once they finish, they and their families would not count against the yearly green card limits.","A doctor who loses or leaves the job stays in legal status during the 120-day window to start new work. Without this, a gap between jobs could put that status at risk.","Doctors coming for U.S. residency training would no longer be presumed to be planning to stay for good. That presumption can lead to a visa denial."],"targeted_provisions":["Up to three slots per state each year could go to doctors who practice or teach at an academic medical center. Those jobs would not need to be in an area the government calls short on doctors.","Some exchange visitors must go home for two years before they can return. Section 6 drops that rule for their spouses and children, and it covers all exchange visitors, not just doctors."],"transparency_accountability":["The program's legal authority would run out three years after the bill is signed. Congress would have to pass another law to keep it going.","U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services would send Congress and the Health and Human Services Department a yearly count of doctors admitted through the program. The count would be broken out state by state."]},"flagValence":{"your_money":["contested"],"workers_jobs":["good","good","good","bad"],"civil_liberties":["contested","contested","contested"],"targeted_provisions":["contested","contested"],"transparency_accountability":["good","good"]},"needsResummary":false,"displaySummaryHtml":null,"rawStatusText":"Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.","chamber":"SENATE","policyArea":"Immigration","legislativeSubjects":[],"lawStatus":null,"lawNumber":null,"latestActionText":"Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.","latestTextVersion":"Introduced in Senate","textVersionUsed":"Introduced in Senate","dateAdded":"2026-03-30T00:00:00+00:00","summarizedAt":"2026-08-20T00:00:00+00:00","recordId":"e0c839b9-956c-47c3-9f38-41674f57d111","feedIdentityKey":"119/s/709","websiteBillId":"S-709","yourvoiceSummary":"If you live in an area short on doctors, this bill could bring more of them. It would restart the Conrad State 30 program, whose legal authority ran out in 2015. The program lets each state sponsor doctors from other countries who train here. Those doctors skip the usual rule that sends them home for two years. In return, they must work at least three years where the government says doctors are scarce. If your area already has enough doctors, you likely would not notice a change.\n\nEach state could sponsor 35 doctors a year, up from 30. The cap would grow by five more each year when states use about 90 percent of their slots. It could pass 45, and it would not drop below 30. States could also place up to three of these doctors a year at teaching hospitals. Those jobs would not have to be in a shortage area.\n\nThe bill also sets rules for these doctors' job contracts. A contract would have to list on-call hours, on-call pay, malpractice coverage, and every work site. Non-compete clauses would be banned. A doctor whose employer breaks labor law could switch jobs and keep the waiver. A doctor who quits by choice owes one more year of service. Doctors who finish the required service would not count against yearly green card limits. Their spouses and children would not either. A separate section drops the two-year return rule for the spouses and children of all exchange visitors, not just doctors.","updatedAt":"2026-10-25T03:42:20.321355+00:00"}