I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2709 

To authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants 

for career support for skilled internationally educated health professionals. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 10, 2015 

Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services 

to award grants for career support for skilled internationally educated health professionals. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Professional’s Access 

5 To Health Workforce Integration Act of 2015’’. 

6 SEC. 2. CAREER SUPPORT FOR SKILLED, INTERNATION7 ALLY EDUCATED HEALTH PROFESSIONALS. 

8 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

9 (1) According to the Association of Schools of 

10 Public Health, projections indicate a nationwide 


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1 shortage of up to 250,000 public health workers 

2 needed by 2020. 

3 (2) Similar trends are projected for other health 

4 professions indicating shortages across disciplines, 

5 including within the fields of nursing (500,000 by 

6 2025), dentistry (15,000 by 2025), pharmacy 

7 (38,000 by 2030), mental and behavioral health, pri8 mary care (46,000 by 2025), and community and al9 lied health. 

10 (3) A nationwide health workforce shortage will 

11 result in serious health threats and more severe and 

12 costly health care needs, due to, in part, a delayed 

13 response to food-borne outbreaks, emerging infec14 tious diseases, natural disasters, fewer cancer 

15 screenings, and delayed treatment. 

16 (4) Vulnerable and underserved populations and 

17 health professional shortage areas will be most se18 verely impacted by the health workforce shortage. 

19 (5) According to the Migration Policy Institute, 

20 over 2,000,000 college-educated immigrants in the 

21 United States today are unemployed or under22 employed in low- or semi-skilled jobs that fail to 

23 draw on their education and expertise. 


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1 (6) Approximately 2 out of every 5 internation2 ally educated immigrants are unemployed or under3 employed. 

4 (7) According to Drexel University Center for 

5 Labor Markets and Policy, underemployment for 

6 internationally educated immigrant women is 28 per7 cent higher than for their male counterparts. 

8 (8) According to the Drexel University Center 

9 for labor markets and policy, the mean annual earn10 ings of underemployed immigrants were $32,000, or 

11 43 percent less than United States born college 

12 graduates employed in the college labor market. 

13 (9) According to Upwardly Global and the Wel14 come Back Initiative, with proper guidance and sup15 port, underemployed skilled immigrants typically in16 crease their income by 215 percent to 900 percent. 

17 (10) According to the Brookings Institution and 

18 the Partnership for a New American Economy, im19 migrants working in the health workforce are, on av20 erage, better educated than United States-born 

21 workers in the health workforce. 

22 (b) GRANTS TO ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.— 

23 (1) AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE GRANTS.—The 

24 Secretary of Health and Human Services acting 

25 through the Bureau of Health Workforce within the 


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1 Health Resources and Services Administration, the 

2 National Institute on Minority Health and Health 

3 Disparities, or the Office of Minority Health (in this 

4 section referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) may award 

5 grants to eligible entities to carry out activities de6 scribed in subsection (c). 

7 (2) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a 

8 grant under this section, an entity shall— 

9 (A) be a clinical, public health, or health 

10 services organization, a community-based or 

11 nonprofit entity, an academic institution, a 

12 faith-based organization, a State, county, or 

13 local government, an Area Health Education 

14 Center, or another entity determined appro15 priate by the Secretary; and 

16 (B) submit to the Secretary an application 

17 at such time, in such manner, and containing 

18 such information as the Secretary may require. 

19 (c) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—A grant awarded 

20 under this section shall be used— 

21 (1) to provide services to assist unemployed and 

22 underemployed skilled immigrants, residing in the 

23 United States, who have legal, permanent work au24 thorization and who are internationally educated 

25 health professionals, enter into the American health 


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1 workforce with employment matching their health 

2 professional skills and education, and advance in em3 ployment to positions that better match their health 

4 professional education and expertise; 

5 (2) to provide training opportunities to reduce 

6 barriers to entry and advancement in the health 

7 workforce for skilled, internationally educated immi8 grants; 

9 (3) to educate employers regarding the abilities 

10 and capacities of internationally educated health 

11 professionals; 

12 (4) to assist in the evaluation of foreign creden13 tials; and 

14 (5) to facilitate access to contextualized and ac15 celerated courses on English as a second language. 

16 (d) DEFINITION.—In this section: 

17 (1) The term ‘‘health professional’’ means an 

18 individual trained for employment or intended em19 ployment in the field of public health, health man20 agement, dentistry, health administration, medicine, 

21 nursing, pharmacy, psychology, social work, psychi22 atry, other mental and behavioral health, allied 

23 health, community health or wellness work, including 

24 fitness and nutrition, or other fields as determined 

25 appropriate by the Secretary. 


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1 (2) The term ‘‘underemployed’’ means being 

2 employed at less skilled tasks than an employee’s 

3 training or abilities would otherwise permit. 

4 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

5 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

6 such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 

7 2016 through 2020. 

Æ 


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