The Academy reaffirms its position that it is the responsibility of the United States to train and distribute an adequate number of physicians to meet the diverse health care needs of its people, as well as to provide training opportunities for physicians from other countries. Foreign citizens who are accepted to family medicine residency programs should have timely processing of their visa applications between their residency match and their residency start date to begin clinical training on time and minimize disruptions in patient care.
The AAFP recognizes the important role physicians utilizing J-1 visa waivers have in improving health care disparities by serving rural and underserved communities. (2003) (September 2024 COD)