Previous Story
Eased rules sought for hiring foreign doctors
|
Posted on Sep 29 2008
A lawmaker has penned legislation that would ease the rules for foreign doctors practicing in the Commonwealth.
The bill, as pre-filed by Rep. Justo Quitugua, proposes to amend a 2007 law that has precluded certain foreign doctors, including some working at the Commonwealth Health Center, from working in the Northern Marianas.
The proposed legislation would allow for a limited license for these doctors and thereby allow them to stay in the Commonwealth.
“The reason for this is that the CNMI cannot afford to recruit physicians from the U.S. or Canada alone. The CNMI is competing with the rest of the world to recruit physicians and the U.S. itself recruits from such countries as India, Sri Lanka, China, Philippines, and Australia,” Quitugua says in his bill.
“This amendment will permit foreign physicians to practice in the CNMI under the supervision of a CNMI licensed U.S. medical graduate. It will also provide the Department of Public Health with the opportunity to negotiate fair compensation packages for these foreign physicians given the CNMI’s limited resources,” he adds.
The bill is expected to be introduced on the House floor on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2008. It will become law once passed by both houses of the Legislature, and signed by the governor.
