Immigration Policies and the U.S. Medical Education System: A Diverse Physician Workforce to Reduce Health Disparities

Excerpt

In the last 3 years, President Obama has taken unprecedented executive actions to protect immigrants in the United States. These new immigration policies provide previously undocumented immigrants living in the U.S. with lawful presence and new opportunities to participate in post-secondary education, including medical school, residency, fellowship training, and to practice as physicians. U.S. Medical Schools and Graduate Medical Education (GME) programs can now reach beyond the traditional pool of qualified applicants to enhance diversity and reduce racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic health disparities. It remains to be seen whether this will be possible, given the limited training opportunities, and medical licensing and financial aid barriers these immigrants face in becoming healthcare professionals. …