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Healthcare Industry Leaders In Letter To President Biden, Congressional Leaders Note Quality Healthcare Hinges On Including Immigration Provisions In Reconciliation Bill

By December 8, 2021December 10th, 2021No Comments

“These immigrants are the backbone of our healthcare system working as nursing assistants, home health aides, personal care aides, medical assistants, dental assistants, and registered nurses.” 

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today the American Business Immigration Coalition delivered a letter (full text below) to President Biden, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, signed by 19 Healthcare industry leaders, companies, and organizations across the nation, pushing for inclusion of immigration provisions in the reconciliation bill.

As the U.S. healthcare industry struggles with unprecedented labor shortages during the COVID-19 pandemic and amidst the growing threat of the Omicron variant, the proposal that has passed the House and is awaiting Senate consideration, would allow an estimated seven million people – including millions of Dreamers, Temporary Protected Status holders and essential workers – to apply for temporary work authorizations and protections from deportation to ease the labor shortage.

“The proposal now pending in Congress does not include citizenship, but would allow an estimated seven million people to apply for temporary work authorizations and protections from deportation.The temporary work authorizations also would help address the severe labor shortage in the healthcare sector, particularly at a time when health care and hospital workers are bracing for the potential spread of Omicron, the newest COVID-19 variant,” the letter stated.

The letter elaborated on the important role undocumented immigrants play in the U.S. healthcare sector. “There are almost 280,000 undocumented workers in the healthcare industry, including 62,600 DACA-eligible individuals. More than 11,000 are TPS holders who are permitted to live and work in the U.S. because armed conflicts or natural disasters make it unsafe to return to their countries of origin.”

The letter also noted the important role immigrants could play in healthcare that as the U.S. population ages in coming years “As our population ages, we will need hundreds of thousands of home health aides, personal care aides, and healthcare workers of every skill level. Students lacking permanent legal status are a critical part of the pipeline for filling these job openings,” the letter stated.

The letter’s signatories include:

  • Karen Teitelbaum, President & CEO, Sinai Chicago
  • Carole Segal, Board Member, Rush University; Co-Founder, Crate & Barrel; Board Member, American Business Immigration Coalition
  • Bill Lucia, Former CEO, HMS; Board Member, American Business Immigration Coalition (Florida)
  • Dr. Zaher Sahloul, President, MedGlobal; Board Member, American Business Immigration Coalition (Illinois)
  • Lisa Smith, Vice President, Advocacy and Public Policy, Catholic Health Association of the United States
  • José Ramón Fernández-Peña, Immediate Past President, American Public Health Association; Executive Director, Welcome Back Initiative
  • Katie Fullam Harris, Chief Government Affairs Officer, MaineHealth
  • South Carolina Hospital Association
  • Thomas Kelly, Head of Medicaid-Retired, CVS Aetna (Arizona)
  • Adam Lampert, CEO, Cambridge Caregivers/Manchester Care Homes (Texas)
  • Stephanie Rakofsky, President & CEO, Rakofsky Management, Inc.; Former Director of Social Work, Care Coordination, and Counseling, South Miami Hospital
  • Beth Armstrong, Executive Director, People’s Health Clinic, (Park City, Utah)
  • R. Jacob Cintron, President & Chief Executive Officer, University Medical Center of El Paso
  • Dr. Idler Bonhomme, Owner and Clinical Director, Fyzical Therapy & Balance Centers of Orlando; Chair, Greater Haitian American Chamber of Commerce – Orlando
  • Mark McAdoo, Founder CEO, SourcEdge Solutions, Member Board Of Directors at NeuroFlow, Drexel University Board of Trustees
  • Rocco Salviola, CEO & Founder at Harmony Health
  • Cora Tellez, CEO, Founder and Board Chair, Sterling Administration; Former Lead Independent Director, HMS
  • Justin Neese, President & Chief Executive Officer, i2i Systems – Population Health Management
  • Stanton Stipes, EVP, Business Development, Veyo, LLC.; Director, Arizona Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired

FULL LETTER:

Dear President Biden, Speaker Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Schumer, Minority Leaders McConnnell and McCarthy,

As leaders of the healthcare profession, we write to urge you to include protections for Dreamers, Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders, and essential workers in the budget reconciliation bill.

Pathways to citizenship for undocumented immigrants would improve healthcare services for Americans and our economy as a whole, as economists have previously written to you. The proposal now pending in Congress does not include citizenship, but would allow an estimated seven million people to apply for temporary work authorizations and protections from deportation.

The temporary work authorizations also would help address the severe labor shortage in the healthcare sector, particularly at a time when health care and hospital workers are bracing for the potential spread of Omicron, the newest COVID-19 variant.

There are almost 280,000 undocumented workers in the healthcare industry, including 62,600 DACA-eligible individuals. More than 11,000 are TPS holders who are permitted to live and work in the U.S. because armed conflicts or natural disasters make it unsafe to return to their countries of origin.

These immigrants are the backbone of our healthcare system working as nursing assistants, home health aides, personal care aides, medical assistants, dental assistants, and registered nurses. They also serve in frontline jobs that keep our medical and care facilities running, including housekeepers and cleaners, receptionists and clerks, and janitors and building cleaners.

Our co-workers who lack permanent legal status have always been indispensable, and Americans have come to know them as “essential workers” due to the pandemic. Every day, Dreamers, TPS holders, and undocumented healthcare workers put their own lives on the line to save the lives of Americans. They care for our sick and comfort our dying, at great risk to their own safety, while working under the added stress and fear of being deported and separated from their loved ones.

Even before the pandemic, America was facing a scarcity of healthcare workers. Recent studies show that our country will experience a shortage of up to 122,000 physicians by 2032 and will need to hire at least 200,000 nurses per year to meet increasing demands and replace nurses who retire. As our population ages, we will need hundreds of thousands of home health aides, personal care aides, and healthcare workers of every skill level. Students lacking permanent legal status are a critical part of the pipeline for filling these job openings.

Including protections for Dreamers, TPS holders, and essential healthcare workers in the reconciliation bill is morally right and the best way to ensure that all Americans get the best treatment and care we need and deserve. Thank you for acting on this urgent request.