Overview

The “Take A Look” program aimed to expose healthcare professionals in training to practice opportunities in Upstate New York communities. The program provided 3-day, guided tours in an effort to educate participants on Upstate New York hospitals, medical staffs, communities and cultures through hospital, FQHC, and ambulatory care site visits.

Loan Forgiveness

Doctors Across New York (DANY), a series of state-funded programs enacted in 2008, helped to train and place physicians in a variety of settings and specialties to care for New York’s diverse population. DANY programs included: Physician Practice Support (PPS), Physician Loan Repayment (PLR), Ambulatory Care Training, Studies on the Physician Workforce, and the Diversity in Medicine/Post-Baccalaureate Program.

Physician Practice Support and Physician Loan Repayment awards both provided up to $120,000 in funding over a three-year period to applicants who could identify a licensed physician that had completed training and was willing to commit to a three-year service obligation in an underserved region within New York State.

NYSED Regents Physician Loan Forgiveness Award Program

The purpose of the Regents Physician Loan Forgiveness Award Program was to increase the number of physicians practicing in areas of New York State designated by the New York State Board of Regents as having a shortage of physicians, with an emphasis placed on primary care.

Pending the appropriation of State funds during the yearly session of the New York State legislature, at least 80 awards up to $10,000 per year for two years were offered. The award amount was based on undergraduate and medical school student loan amounts, loan interest expense, and income.

 Visa Sponsorship Information

Rural J-1 Visa Waiver: Having quality physicians is essential to providing healthcare in rural communities. In many cases, the ability of healthcare facilities to remain open depends on having an adequate staff of physicians. Unfortunately, rural areas often experience difficulties in the recruitment and retention of physicians. Due to these difficulties, many communities turn to the recruitment of foreign medical graduates who trained on a J-1 Visa to fill their physician vacancies. A J-1 Visa Waiver waives the two year home residency requirement and allows a physician to stay in the country to practice in a federally designated Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) or Medically Underserved Area (MUA) if recommended by an interested federal government agency.

NEW YORK “STATE 30”

The New York State Department of Health sponsors 30 physicians each year for J-1 visa waivers under the New York “State 30” Program. Applications submitted by the deadline (usually late November/early December) are reviewed on a competitive basis with final decisions being made by March. This program did not provide direct recruitment services for J-1 candidates and was open to all specialties. Candidates were required to agree to practice, or serve populations residing, in federally designated underserved areas in New York State for three years if granted a waiver and H-1B visa by U.S. Immigration and Citizenship Services.

Additional Resources:
• US Department of State – J-1 Visa Waiver
• New York “State 30” Program Information Bulletin
• Rural J-1 Visa Waivers