Foreign-Trained Doctors are Critical to Serving Many U.S. Communities
There are more than 247,000 doctors with medical degrees from foreign countries practicing in the United States, making up slightly more than one-quarter of all doctors. Although the data used in this report does not contain information on country of birth or citizenship, evidence from other sources indicates that most foreign-trained doctors are not U.S. citizens—meaning that the majority are foreign-born. These doctors play a key role in providing healthcare for millions of Americans.
This American Immigration Council report builds upon other studies that have looked at the critical role foreign-trained doctors play regionally, in underserved communities, in rural areas, and in providing primary health care. It finds that foreign-trained physicians are more likely than U.S.-trained doctors to practice in lower-income and disadvantaged communities and, as a result, their presence is critically important.
More precisely, this report examines foreign-trained doctors in Primary Care Service Areas (PCSAs) and analyzes the socio-demographic characteristics of the populations they serve (see Methodology). For instance, it finds that:
— In areas with the highest poverty rates—where more than 30 percent of the population lives below the federal poverty rate—nearly one-third of all doctors are foreign-trained.
— Where per-capita income is below $15,000 per year, 42.5 percent of all doctors are foreign-trained.
— Where 75 percent or more of the population is non-white, 36.2 percent of the doctors are foreign-trained.
— Where 10 percent or less of the population has a college degree, nearly one-third of all doctors are foreign-trained.
KJ