I 
117TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 8019 
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 9, 2022 
Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD (for herself and Mr. SMITH of Washington) 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 inter-
nationally educated health professionals. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Professional’s Access 
To Health Workforce Integration Act of 2022’’. 
SEC. 2. CAREER SUPPORT FOR SKILLED, INTERNATION-
ALLY EDUCATED HEALTH PROFESSIONALS. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
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(1) According to the Association of Schools of 
Public Health, projections indicate a nationwide 
shortage of up to 250,000 public health workers 
needed by 2020. 
(2) Similar trends are projected for other health 
professions indicating shortages across disciplines, 
including within the fields of nursing (500,000 by 
2025), dentistry (15,000 by 2025), pharmacy 
(38,000 by 2030), mental and behavioral health, pri-
mary care (46,000 by 2025), and community and al-
lied health. 
(3) A nationwide health workforce shortage will 
result in serious health threats and more severe and 
costly health care needs, due to, in part, a delayed 
response to food-borne outbreaks, emerging infec-
tious diseases, natural disasters, fewer cancer 
screenings, and delayed treatment. 
(4) Vulnerable and underserved populations and 
health professional shortage areas will be most se-
verely impacted by the health workforce shortage. 
(5) According to the Migration Policy Institute, 
over 2,000,000 college-educated immigrants in the 
United States today are unemployed or under-
employed in low- or semi-skilled jobs that fail to 
draw on their education and expertise. 
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(6) Approximately 2 out of every 5 internation-
ally educated immigrants are unemployed or under-
employed. 
(7) According to Drexel University Center for 
Labor Markets and Policy, underemployment for 
internationally educated immigrant women is 28 per-
cent higher than for their male counterparts. 
(8) According to the Drexel University Center 
for labor markets and policy, the mean annual earn-
ings of underemployed immigrants was $32,000, or 
43 percent less than United States-born college 
graduates employed in the college labor market. 
(9) According to Upwardly Global and the Wel-
come Back Initiative, with proper guidance and sup-
port, underemployed skilled immigrants typically in-
crease their income by 215 percent to 900 percent. 
(10) According to the Brookings Institution and 
the Partnership for a New American Economy, im-
migrants working in the health workforce are, on av-
erage, better educated than United States-born 
workers in the health workforce. 
(b) GRANTS TO ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.— 
(1) AUTHORITY
TO
PROVIDE
GRANTS.—The 
Secretary of Health and Human Services acting 
through the Bureau of Health Workforce within the 
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Health Resources and Services Administration, the 
National Institute on Minority Health and Health 
Disparities, or the Office of Minority Health (in this 
section referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) may award 
grants to eligible entities to carry out activities de-
scribed in subsection (c). 
(2) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a 
grant under this section, an entity shall— 
(A) be a clinical, public health, or health 
services organization, a community-based or 
nonprofit entity, an academic institution, a 
faith-based organization, a State, county, or 
local government, an Area Health Education 
Center, or another entity determined appro-
priate by the Secretary; and 
(B) submit to the Secretary an application 
at such time, in such manner, and containing 
such information as the Secretary may require. 
(c) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—A grant awarded 
under this section shall be used— 
(1) to provide services to assist unemployed and 
underemployed skilled immigrants, residing in the 
United States, who have legal, permanent work au-
thorization and who are internationally educated 
health professionals, enter into the American health 
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workforce with employment matching their health 
professional skills and education, and advance in em-
ployment to positions that better match their health 
professional education and expertise; 
(2) to provide training opportunities to reduce 
barriers to entry and advancement in the health 
workforce for skilled, internationally educated immi-
grants; 
(3) to educate employers regarding the abilities 
and capacities of internationally educated health 
professionals; 
(4) to assist in the evaluation of foreign creden-
tials; and 
(5) to facilitate access to contextualized and ac-
celerated courses on English as a second language. 
(d) DEFINITION.—In this section: 
(1) The term ‘‘health professional’’ means an 
individual trained for employment or intended em-
ployment in the field of public health, health man-
agement, dentistry, health administration, medicine, 
nursing, pharmacy, psychology, social work, psychi-
atry, other mental and behavioral health, allied 
health, community health or wellness work, including 
fitness and nutrition, or other fields as determined 
appropriate by the Secretary. 
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(2) The term ‘‘underemployed’’ means being 
employed at less skilled tasks than an employee’s 
training or abilities would otherwise permit. 
(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 
such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 
2023 through 2027. 
Æ 
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