Minn. nursing homes, rural health care could be devastated by a travel ban, Swanson warns
The ban is on hold and in legal limbo after a pair of dramatic court rulings. Swanson and her team of attorneys, who had joined
Since Trump signed his order, Swanson's office has been flooded with e-mails and phone calls. "We're getting contacted by so many people -- families who are separated by the ocean. Health care. Universities deprived of scientists who can't come now. Corporations who are relying on people from some of these countries to help bring know-how to us," Swanson said Friday. "It's really quite broad."
After the order was struck down by a federal appeals court on Thursday, Trump on Friday responded by saying he may revise the order or possibly appeal to the
Swanson's office has compiled more than a dozen sworn statements from those affected by the ban. Others from the academic and corporate worlds have confided in Swanson's office but won't go public, she said. "There's fear and trepidation ... that the president will tweet at them," she said.
In addition to worries about immigrant families being torn apart and universities losing foreign students and researchers, statistics show that the ban could create havoc for those living in nursing homes and rural
Foreign-born doctors and care workers have been instrumental in helping ease shortages in those areas. In
The dearth of primary-care doctors is especially acute in rural and economically distressed urban areas, in part because many doctors are retiring and fewer medical students are choosing to go into primary care, Swanson said. In addition, those who leave rural communities to go to medical school aren't returning to their hometowns.
"They incur 200 grand in loans and then they stay in the cities and they don't move back," Swanson said. "We have a dire shortage of primary-care doctors, and it's going to get worse as the population continues to age."
Even loan forgiveness programs used to entice newly minted doctors to rural areas haven't solved the problem, she said.
To help fill those gaps, a federal program draws foreign-born doctors to these areas. Doctors who have a J-1 visa must leave
"Under this program, rural areas obtain world-class physicians for three years," according to an affidavit from
'Recruitment is crucial'
Trump's travel ban executive order sparked concern, fear and confusion among some of these doctors. According to Swanson, 275 doctors in
Schoenbaum said such concerns have dampened efforts to bring in more foreign-born doctors. "Recruitment is crucial for
In some communities, a foreign-born doctor could be the entire medical staff, said
The continued strain and possible worsening of the shortage could have ramifications not only for the physical health of those living in small rural communities but also for a town's economy, Swanson said.
"To have a critical access hospital, you have to have physicians," Swanson said. "And if this ban creates a chilling effect and we can't recruit, we might have potential closures of some of these hospitals. That's incredibly detrimental to those towns."
Ripples in health care
Trump's order also could add stress to those working in home health care and in nursing homes, Swanson said. According to statistics and statements gathered by her office, 5 to 8 percent of the state's home health care workers are from the countries restricted by Trump's executive order. "That's 1,300 to 2,000 people," she said. "That's significant."
About 3 to 5 percent of the nursing home workers are from those countries, Swanson said.
A program that matches medical students with residencies has more than 42,000 registrants vying for 31,000 positions around the country. International students are concerned about their futures, she said.
"They wonder whether they will be able to complete their residency and finish all their requirements," she said. "There's uncertainty, an uneasiness. We work the majority of our lives to be educated to be doctors and then this comes up where you might not be able to fulfill your dream or goal of becoming a physician."
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