International Medical Graduates Assistance Act of 2022
Bill: H.R.8022 | Sponsor: Rep. Smith, Adam (D-WA)
Policy area: Health

Summary:
International Medical Graduates Assistance Act of 2022
This bill authorizes grants and makes other changes to facilitate the practice of medicine by international medical graduates who are lawfully present in the United States and graduated from a medical school outside of the United States or Canada.
Specifically, the Department of Health and Human Services may award grants for states and territories to
The bill also exempts under certain circumstances such international medical graduates from the cap on full-time equivalent residents that is otherwise applicable for purposes of graduate medical education payments under Medicare.

To address barriers immigrants and refugees face to entering the health 
                care workforce, 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 ``International Medical Graduates 
Assistance Act of 2022''.

    TITLE I--INCENTIVIZING STATES TO ALLOW TRANSITIONAL PRACTICE BY 
                    INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL GRADUATES

SEC. 101. GRANTS.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services may 
award grants to States to develop and implement programs to allow 
eligible international medical graduates, for a period of up to 4 years 
while completing steps 1 and 2 of the United States Medical Licensing 
Examination, to practice medicine in the respective State under the 
supervision of a fully licensed physician.
    (b) Definition.--In this section:
            (1) The term ``eligible international medical graduate'' 
        means an individual who--
                    (A) graduated from a school of medicine outside of 
                the United States or Canada; and
                    (B) is--
                            (i) lawfully admitted for permanent 
                        residence;
                            (ii) admitted as a refugee under section 
                        207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
                        U.S.C. 1157);
                            (iii) granted asylum under section 208 of 
                        such Act (8 U.S.C. 1158); or
                            (iv) an immigrant otherwise authorized to 
                        be employed in the United States.
            (2) The term ``State'' includes the District of Columbia 
        and any territory of the United States.

SEC. 102. EXEMPTION OF CERTAIN ELIGIBLE INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL GRADUATES 
              FROM APPLICATION OF FTE CAP.

    (a) In General.--Section 1886(h)(4)(H) of the Social Security Act 
(42 U.S.C. 1395ww(h)(4)(H)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following new clause:
                            ``(vii) Exemption of certain foreign 
                        medical graduates from counting towards cap.--
                                    ``(I) In general.--For purposes of 
                                applying the limit described in 
                                subparagraph (F), a specified resident 
                                (as defined in subclause (II)) shall 
                                not be taken into account in 
                                determining the total number of full-
                                time equivalent residents before 
                                application of weighting factors (as 
                                determined under this paragraph) with 
                                respect to a hospital's approved 
                                medical residency training program.
                                    ``(II) Specified resident 
                                defined.--For purposes of subclause 
                                (I), the term `specified resident' 
                                means an eligible international medical 
                                graduate (as defined in section 101(b) 
                                of the Pathways to Health Care Act of 
                                2022) who is a resident in a hospital's 
                                approved medical residency training 
                                program, but only if such hospital--
                                            ``(aa) has in effect an 
                                        agreement with a Federally 
                                        qualified health center under 
                                        which residents training in 
                                        such program spend time 
                                        training at such center;
                                            ``(bb) is located in a 
                                        State that allows such eligible 
                                        international medical graduates 
                                        to practice medicine as 
                                        described in section 101(a) of 
                                        such Act; and
                                            ``(cc) predominantly serves 
                                        medically underserved 
                                        populations (as defined in 
                                        section 330(b)(3)(A) of the 
                                        Public Health Service Act), as 
                                        determined by the Secretary.''.
    (b) Study on Removal of Resident Cap.--Not later than 180 days 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health 
and Human Services shall submit to Congress a report on the possibility 
of removing the resident cap under section 1886(h)(4)(F) of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ww(h)(4)(F)).

 TITLE II--ASSISTING INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL GRADUATES DURING PURSUIT OF 
                               LICENSURE

SEC. 201. GRANTS.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services may 
award grants to States to provide assistance to eligible international 
medical graduates while such graduates are completing steps 1 and 2 of 
the United States Medical Licensing Examination.
    (b) Covered Assistance.--Assistance provided to an eligible 
international medical graduate pursuant to this section may include 
paying the costs of the United States Medical Licensing Examination, 
career counseling, case management, classes in English as a second 
language, assistance in diploma verification, and test preparation 
courses.
    (c) Definition.--In this section, the terms ``eligible 
international medical graduate'' and ``State'' have the meanings given 
to those terms in section 101.
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