The Donald Trump administration has quietly reversed its travel ban on approximately 39 countries, secretly permitting doctors from those nations to work and remain in the United States. According to a report by The New York Times, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services updated its website late last week without any formal announcement, stating that physicians are no longer subject to the processing hold.
Policy Change Without Public Notice
“Applications associated with medical physicians will continue processing,” the Department of Homeland Security told the NYT. The initial travel ban, which targeted 39 countries, had paused all immigration work for applicants from those nations, including visas, work permits, and green cards. Physicians already working in the US were placed on administrative leave by hospitals as they came under scrutiny.
Healthcare Crisis Averted
This policy shift came as the ban threatened to exacerbate a healthcare crisis, given that foreign doctors constitute 25% of all physicians in the US. The administration lifted the ban only for doctors already present in the country. Physicians from Africa, the Middle East, and Venezuela were among those displaced from their jobs.
Impact on Foreign Doctors
The travel ban had severe consequences for existing foreign doctors. For instance, Ezequiel Veliz, a family doctor from Venezuela, was detained by federal agents on April 6 at a checkpoint in Texas. He lost his legal status because his visa renewal was not processed due to the ban, and he was released after ten days.
On April 8, several medical associations—including the American Academies of Family Physicians, Neurology, and Pediatrics—signed a letter to the secretaries of state and homeland security. They expressed “urgent concern” about barriers preventing “qualified, vetted physicians” from entering and remaining in the US, calling for a national-interest exemption and expedited processing.
Uncertainty Remains
“Affected physicians have not yet been notified about any changes in their visa process, but we are hopeful after seeing this update,” said Sebastian Arruarana, founder of Project IMG, an organization representing thousands of international medical graduates in the US.
Limitations of the Exemption
According to experts, the exemption applies only to physicians already in the US. It does not cover doctors from the banned countries who are currently outside the US, nor does it affect incoming residents abroad, as the external travel ban remains in place.
