The Trump administration’s new, six-figure fee for specialty visas for highly skilled workers could land especially hard on the Houston area’s medical industry, immigration policy experts warn.
Late last month, the administration increased the fee for an H-1B visa to $100,000 for employers who petition for a new employee, a staggering markup from the previous cost that ranged between $2,000 and $5,000, depending on the size of the company.
The visa is temporary, and employers can only petition for one if they attest that they have tried to fill the job vacancy with U.S. workers, and that hiring outside labor won’t adversely affect workers’ salaries. The new fee will apply to applications processed after Sept. 21.
Data from the American Immigration Council shows that nearly 20% of health care workers across Texas are immigrants, including nearly 30% in Houston, said Chelsie Kramer, the Texas state organizer for the council.
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“Over 27% of the workers (in Houston) employed in the health care industry are immigrants. So that H-1B hit is going to impact the medical center and all our medical providers,” she said. “When we’re looking at specific occupations, over 45% of all the physicians in the Houston Metro are immigrants.”
Not all immigrants in the medical field in Houston are on visas, as some have been naturalized or have transitioned to legal permanent residency status, Kramer said. But she said the H-1B program can act as a starting point for medical professionals, specifically in the medical research field.
“No immigration policy happens in a vacuum; they’re all connected,” she said. “And so this overall rhetoric about immigration in general – and the lack of stability and predictability from the business community perspective – is what’s harming Texas the most, especially Houston.”
‘We recognize the potential implications’
The Trump administration said when it announced the fee increase that it was part of the president’s plan to prioritize jobs for U.S. citizens over foreign workers. That’s despite the safeguards in place in the H-1B application process to search for employees who are citizens.
“The H-1B nonimmigrant visa program was created to bring temporary workers into the United States to perform additive, high-skilled functions, but it has been deliberately exploited to replace, rather than supplement, American workers with lower-paid, lower-skilled labor,” the White House said in a Sept. 19 proclamation. “The large-scale replacement of American workers through systemic abuse of the program has undermined both our economic and national security.”
MD Anderson Cancer Center is seen, Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2024, in Houston. (Jason Fochtman/Staff photographer)
Texas is second in the country in the number of workers on an H-1B and the number of employers who sponsor them, according to federal statistics. There are currently 27,244 employees on the visa, and 4,670 employers who petitioned for the visa. That’s second to California’s 61,841 and 7,592, respectively.
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center currently has 120 H-1B beneficiaries among its ranks – the second-highest total of medical research facilities in Texas behind UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston has 64, and the Houston Methodist Research Institute has 53, according to federal statistics.
In an emailed statement, a spokesperson at MD Anderson said the organization expects additional guidance on the new policy.
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“The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is awaiting further guidance from federal authorities regarding H-1B visa requirements to ensure continued compliance, and we will remain in close coordination with The University of Texas System,” the spokesperson said.
A spokesperson for the Houston Methodist Research Institute said none of its current employees will be affected.
“Houston Methodist remains committed to providing unparalleled patient care and advancing medical research as we evaluate any future H-1B petitions,” said Amy McCaig, the manager of public relations.
UTHealth Houston did not respond to requests for comment.
Rice University does not have a medical school, but it offers coursework in the natural sciences that “offers excellent preparation” for students interested in the medical field. The university has 65 employees on an H-1B visa.
Chris Stipes, the executive director of news and media relations at the university, said the school is aware of the potential ramifications the visa policy could have.
“Rice is closely monitoring the recent federal policy change for new H-1B visa applications, and we recognize the potential implications this may have on our institution and the broader higher education community,” Stipes said in an email. “This situation is still evolving, and we are actively assessing how it could impact our ability to recruit and support top international talent, which plays a vital role in our academic and research mission.”
Pending Litigation
As employers and schools await further guidance, a coalition of groups that includes the American Association of University Professors filed a lawsuit last week challenging the new fee.
The lawsuit was filed in federal court in the Northern District of California and asks the court to block implementation of the fee. The complaint alleges that, among other charges, the fee will deliver a blow to the health care industry, especially in underserved areas.
“The H-1B visa program is a critical pathway to hiring educators and health care workers – two categories in high demand in the U.S. – who comprise 10% of all H-1B workers,” the filing states.
This article originally published at How a $100,000 visa fee could shake up Houston’s health system.
