The Officers of the Oklahoma County Medical Society respectfully ask you to encourage President Trump to create a healthcare exception to the newly established $100,000 H-1B visa fee, specifically for physicians.

This rule will create significant waste in government resources and risks exacerbating the physician shortage. Currently, CMS spends millions of dollars training resident physicians from around the world who enter the U.S. on J-1 visas, which are not affected by this change. However, once these physicians complete their training, most require H-1B visas to remain in the U.S. workforce. Without an exemption, the government will be funding their education only to prevent them from practicing here, leaving communities without the benefit of their skills.

Hospitals and clinics cannot afford an additional $100,000 per physician as a start-up cost. This will deter hiring, leave residency slots unfilled, and waste taxpayer dollars invested in medical training. The result will be fewer physicians available to serve patients, worsening the shortages already straining hospitals and underserved communities.

While the point of increasing pay for American citizens is well thought out, the implementation of this rule is not. The impact in healthcare will be devastating. Because the government also limits the number of medical school training slots, hospitals and practices cannot simply replace these physicians by training more American students. Without a healthcare exception, patient care will suffer, hospitals will face greater risk of closure, and physician shortages will deepen.

Please consider the irreparable harm this change will make to healthcare, particularly in Oklahoma.  We urge you to call on President Trump to create an exemption for residency- and fellowship-trained physicians, or to advance legislation through Congress to address this critical issue. The stakes are too high for Oklahoma and the nation’s healthcare system to ignore.