Thanks to your support, on Wednesday, November 20th, Governor Healey signed the Physician Pathway Act into law! Tucked inside the massive economic development bill enacted last week, the Physician Pathway Act will address acute physician shortages in underserved communities by mobilizing the expertise of our Commonwealth’s experienced internationally-trained physicians.
The new law will create a pathway to full physician licensure for qualified internationally trained physicians in exchange for at least three years of medical practice in a healthcare facility serving state residents with the greatest need, and provides a mentorship alternative to the redundant, hard-to-secure residency requirement – which experienced physicians have already fulfilled in their home countries.
Passage has been a priority for MIRA Coalition and for MIRA member African Bridge Network this session – as well as for hundreds of our Commonwealth’s experienced immigrant and refugee physicians, who want nothing more than to restart their careers and give back to the communities who welcomed them.
Introduced at the start of the current legislative session, this critical healthcare workforce bill enjoyed a remarkable trajectory, quickly accumulating endorsements from the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers, the Massachusetts Medical Center, the Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association, and the Massachusetts Business Roundtable. This outpouring of support resulted in its adoption into Governor Healey’s economic development bill, where it won the support of Senate and House leadership.
Our bill was the first in the nation to devise an alternative pathway to practice, but now joins nine other states that have enacted similar legislation during the same period. We are grateful to our bill sponsors, Senator Jason Lewis and Representatives Jack Lewis and Mindy Domb for believing in our bill. And to all of our supporters who make this kind of work possible, thank you.
The state Board of Registration in Medicine still needs to develop implementing regulations in partnership with participating healthcare centers before the program can be launched, which could take as long as a year. We’ll share details as we have them.