While immigration has been a highly contested topic in the US, especially in an election year, a new report has shed light on the positive impact immigrants are having on the country's healthcare system. According to the Immigrant Healthcare Index, out of the 990,000 doctors in the US, nearly 26.5%, or 265,000, are immigrants.
Among the immigrant doctors in the US, those born in India have emerged as the single largest group. According to the report, there are around 59,000 Indian doctors in the US, which translates to one in five (or 22%) of all immigrant doctors in the country.
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India is followed by China, which has 16,000 immigrant doctors who trace their roots to China and Hong Kong, accounting for 6%. Pakistan took the third spot with around 13,000 medical practitioners, constituting 5% of the immigrant doctor population in the US.
It is not just doctors that India has contributed to the US healthcare system. Out of the 540,000 registered immigrant nurses in the US, Indians make up around 6% of the workforce. There are around 32,000 Indians working as registered nurses in the US. The Philippines is the single largest source of immigrant nurses in the US, with 140,000 nurses.
The report further stated that Indians, with a total of 176,000 healthcare workers, accounted for 7% of the total immigrant healthcare professional population in the US.
Last month, it was reported that the US, which is expected to face a shortage of at least 100,000 physicians by 2034, was looking at granting special J1 visas to around 5,000 doctors from India.
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It should be noted that since 2023, students who have graduated from medical schools in India can practice in foreign countries, including the US. The National Medical Commission (NMC) of India received the World Federation for Medical Education (WFME) Recognition Status for 10 years, allowing medical graduates from India to practice in countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
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