DOCTORS Act

The DOCTORS Act would change how unused waivers of the J-1 visa’s two-year foreign residency requirement (the 212(e) waiver) are handled. Starting in fiscal year 2026, the bill requires states to report how many waivers they did not use, and the Secretary of State would pool these unused waivers and reallocate a portion—called supplemental waivers—for use in the next year. Supplemental waivers would be distributed equally among eligible state agencies (those that used at least 30 waivers in the prior year). Ten percent of these supplemental waivers would be set aside to support positions in facilities serving medically underserved communities. The program is designed to increase the sharing of waivers across states and direct some waivers to underserved areas. Eligible agencies would be notified annually about how many supplemental waivers are available and how they will be distributed. In short, the bill aims to reduce unused J-1 waivers by reallocating a calculated share to other states, with a portion specifically directed to healthcare facilities serving medically underserved populations.