FIRST COVID–19 Care Delivery Act of 2020

Bill: 116-hr-6905
Sponsor: Rep. Jackson Lee, Sheila [D-TX-18]
Introduced: 2020-05-15 in the House
Policy area: Immigration
Subjects: Cardiovascular and respiratory health
Emergency medical services and trauma care
Foreign labor
Health personnel
Hospital care
Immigration status and procedures
Infectious and parasitic diseases
Licensing and registrations
Medical education
Medicare
Nursing
Visas and passports

Summary:
action_date: 2020-05-15
text: 

Federal Implementation of Recruiting, Staffing, and Triage for COVID-19 Care Delivery Act of 2020 or the FIRST COVID-19 Care Delivery Act of 2020

 
This bill contains provisions to increase the number of health care professionals during an emergency period, in particular the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) emergency, such as by relaxing certain immigration requirements.
 
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shall provide lawful permanent resident status to a qualifying alien who served as a physician or nurse during the COVID-19 emergency and is not otherwise ineligible for such status. To qualify, the alien must have (1) received an H (specialty profession) or J (exchange visitor) visa, (2) received temporary protected status, or (3) been covered under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program. 
 
For an alien seeking lawful permanent resident status under this bill, DHS shall waive (1) certain eligibility requirements, such as any applicable foreign residency requirements; and (2) any annual numerical limitations. 
 
During an emergency period, DHS shall waive (1) any annual numerical limitations for a qualified alien seeking admission under an H or J visa as a physician or nurse, and (2) the two-year foreign residency requirement for certain aliens seeking readmission as a physician or nurse. 
 
During an emergency period, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) shall not impose any caps on the number of medical interns enrolled in any CMS-funded programs. In such a period, a state may waive licensing requirements for an alien physician or nurse admitted under an H or J visa.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2020-05-15
text: Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
action_date: 2020-05-15
text: Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
action_date: 2020-05-15
text: Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
action_date: 2020-05-15
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2020-05-15
text: Introduced in House