DOL urged to retain Schedule A focus on health care shortage occupations 

Feb 20, 2024 - 02:49 PM
Image of young child and mother playing with physician

AHA Feb. 20 strongly urged the Department of Labor to retain professional nurses and physical therapists on the Schedule A Shortage Occupation List and to consider expanding the list to include medical doctors and pharmacists. The Schedule A List aids in hiring international workers by allowing employment sponsors to bypass the requirement to conduct a test of the labor market and apply for a permanent labor certification, a process that can take a year or more. The department is seeking input as to whether the list of Schedule A occupations should be expanded to include Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics and Non-STEM Occupations that are in shortage.

“While the AHA understands the department’s interest in expanding Schedule A to encompass STEM occupations, the current shortages in the health care sector underscore the need to remain focused on including these essential occupations on the list,” the association wrote, responding to the department’s request for information. 

Related News Articles

Chairperson's File
Chair File: Thank You This Week and Every Day to Our Incredible Health Care Workforce
In October 1863, in the middle of the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln decreed that Thanksgiving be held across the U.S. to “heal the wounds of the nation…
Headline
AHA blog: Creating a Culture of Connection — Combating Isolation and Loneliness in the Health Care Workforce 
After noticing widespread loneliness among rural hospital staff, Margo Karsten, Banner Health Western Region president and AHA Policy Board member, was…
Headline
CMS awards third round of Medicare-funded residency slots to hospitals 
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Nov. 21 announced the allocation of 200 new Medicare-funded residency slots to more than 100 teaching…
Headline
Congress urged by AHA, others to include workforce programs for foreign-born staff in end-of-year spending bill 
The AHA and dozens of other organizations Nov. 20 urged House and Senate leaders to include bipartisan workforce legislation in the end-of-year spending…
Blog
Creating a Culture of Connection: Combating Isolation and Loneliness in the Health Care Workforce
No one goes into the health care field unless they want to care for people, but often we care for others so much that accepting care for ourselves is difficult…
Headline
AHA podcast: Navigating Rural Health Care — Solutions for Attracting Talent and Caring for the Community 
In this conversation, Joanne M. Conroy, M.D., CEO and president of Dartmouth Health and 2024 chair of the AHA Board of Trustees, shares how Dartmouth Health…