'Nobody wants to come': What if the U.S. can no longer attract immigrant physicians?

[Dulcinea]

(NPR) Michael Liu grew up in Toronto, Canada, then moved to the U.S. for college and medical school because, to him, America was the premiere destination for fulfilling his aspirations to become a physician and researcher.

"You know, in chase of the American Dream, and understanding all the opportunities — that was such a draw for me," says Liu, who attended Harvard University. He is now 28 and has deep personal and professional roots in Boston, where he's an internal medicine resident at Mass General Brigham.

But this spring, he was shaken by the Trump administration's cuts to scientific research at the National Institutes of Health and staff at the Department of Health and Human Services. "That was a really striking moment for me," Liu says. "It made me question where, professionally, it made most sense for me. I still have strong connections to Toronto and mentors."

Then, in September, Liu was doing rounds with two doctors from Mexico and Costa Rica, when the administration hiked fees nearly 30 fold for H1B visas, which are for highly trained professionals, to $100,000. He watched his colleagues' tearful reactions to the sudden uncertainty that thrust on their careers, knowing that employers like hospital systems are unlikely to be able to afford to pay for such dramatic increases.

https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2025/11/24/nx-s1-5618291/immigrant-physicians-foreign-born-doctors-trump-h1b