Govwatch

Introduced

In Committee

3

Passed One Chamber

4

Passed Both

5

Signed into Law

Sponsor

Michael Lawler

Republican · NY · Representative

Votes with party: 92.3% (549 recorded votes)

Full profile: /officials/L000599

Source: Congress.gov · FEC

Cosponsors (42)

Members who have signed on to support this bill since introduction. Source: Congress.gov.

Latest Action

The most recent step in the bill's legislative path. Committee Activity below shows referrals and reports; the full action-by-action history including floor proceedings lives at Congress.gov →

Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

2026-03-17

Source: Congress.gov

Committee Activity

Currently in

House Committee on the JudiciaryReferred To · 2026-03-17

Previously

Judiciary CommitteeReferred To · 2026-03-17

Plain-English Summary

This bill would make it easier for foreign-trained doctors and other healthcare workers to come to the United States and work by adjusting immigration rules, likely increasing the number of H-1B visas available for medical professionals. The change would help hospitals and clinics fill staffing shortages, particularly in areas where there aren't enough American-trained doctors, though it could affect job opportunities and wages for U.S. healthcare workers.

AI-assisted summary generated from the official bill metadata (title, subjects, actions) sourced from Congress.gov. Cached and reviewed. Always verify against the official text linked below.

Subjects

Immigration

Full Bill Text

Verbatim text published on Congress.gov via GovInfo. Use Cmd+F / Ctrl+F to search within this excerpt.

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [H.R. 7961 Introduced in House (IH)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 7961 To exempt H-1B health care workers from the restriction under the Presidential Proclamation entitled ``Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers'', and for other purposes. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES March 17, 2026 Mr. Lawler (for himself, Mr. Bishop, Ms. Salazar, and Ms. Clarke of New York) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To exempt H-1B health care workers from the restriction under the Presidential Proclamation entitled ``Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers'', and for other purposes. 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 ``H-1Bs for Physicians and the Healthcare Workforce Act''. SEC. 2. EXEMPTION FROM ADDITIONAL FEE FOR H-1B HEALTH CARE WORKERS. (a) In General.--The restriction imposed, pursuant to the Presidential Proclamation entitled ``Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers'' (September 19, 2025), on entry into the United States of aliens as nonimmigrants under section 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b)), except for aliens whose petitions are accompanied or supplemented by a payment of $100,000, shall not apply with respect to any such alien who is employed (or has received an offer of employment) in the health care workforce (as such term is defined in section 5101 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 294q)). (b) Prohibition on Additional Fees.--No fee may be imposed on an alien described in subsection (a) that exceeds the fee set forth in section 214(c)(9)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(c)(9)(B)). <all>

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H–1Bs for Physicians and the Healthcare Workforce Act