Special edition: Global MedTeam featured in Becker’s on its cost-effective approach to international nurse recruitment

Healthforce's weekly briefing for April 30th, 2025. Get smarter on the latest news & trends in the healthcare workforce.

🖐️ THIS WEEK’S TOP 5

1. Global MedTeam’s ethical and cost effective model for nurse recruitment.

2. Alabama’s SB138 and HB238 bills aim to ease licensing for ex-offenders.

3. Pennsylvania Gov. Shapiro invests $6.6M to expand apprenticeships.

4. Cross Over Community launches Medical English program for immigrants.

5. NCSBN study: 140k nurses left since 2022; 40% plan to leave by 2029.

If you found today’s newsletter insightful, then we’d love to hear from you! Please drop us a line at edenn@globalmedteam or kanza@globalmedteam. See you next week!

💪 IMPACT STORY OF THE WEEK

We are proud to announce that Global MedTeam, recently featured in Becker’s Hospital Review in a major milestone, is reshaping international nurse recruitment with a cost-effective, no-risk, direct-hire model. The article highlights how Global MedTeam sources clinically trained nurses from the Philippines, offers full support through immigration and onboarding, and provides a scalable, ethical solution to help hospitals address America’s looming shortage of over 1 million nurses by 2030. (Becker’s)

⚖️ POLICY SPOTLIGHT

1. Bills SB138 and HB238 would ease occupational licensing barriers in Alabama for people with criminal records, helping address a severe labor shortage—only 38 workers per 100 jobs—and unlocking $1.88B in economic impact. (Alabama Political Reporter)

2. New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham vetoed HB 14, which aimed to eliminate the 8% gross receipts tax on medical services, despite the state losing 247 doctors in five years. ‘Think 'New Mexico’ cites the tax and high malpractice costs as key barriers to recruiting providers. (KUNM)

3. Illinois passed a law creating a new medical license pathway for internationally trained doctors, allowing supervised practice in underserved areas and easing a projected shortage of 6,200 doctors by 2030. (IPM News)

4. PA Governor Shapiro’s administration has invested over $6.6 million in 19 organizations to expand apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship programs in agriculture, healthcare, and IT sectors, aiming to address workforce shortages. This effort builds on a $65 million increase in vocational training funding, strengthening Pennsylvania's workforce pipeline. (Pa.Gov)

5. US Sen. Jon Ossoff (GA) is cosponsoring the bipartisan REDI Act to help reduce Georgia’s doctor shortage by allowing medical residents to defer student loans without interest. Georgia will need 239,000 new healthcare workers by 2032, per the Georgia Healthcare Workforce Commission. (Ossof.Senate)

🎓 BACK TO SCHOOL

1. CHI Health's Certified Nursing Assistance Advance Program is offering free CNA training and guaranteed employment. The program, which started in Lincoln and expanded to Omaha, has trained over 30 students, helping fill staffing gaps and providing career opportunities. (1011 Now)

2. Oregon Tech is proposing a new public medical school in Klamath Falls, focusing on osteopathic medicine. The school would collaborate with Sky Lakes Medical Center and train primary care physicians, with a $1.5 million request for planning. (Oregon Live)

3. Cross Over Community Development in Dayton has launched a six-month Medical English Program to help immigrants and refugees with healthcare experience from their home countries gain the language skills needed to work in the U.S. The program includes real-life scenarios and aims to address nursing shortages in the area. (Dayton 24/7)

📊 BY THE NUMBERS

1. Missouri ranks 4th worst in the U.S. for primary care shortages, with only 7 counties adequately staffed and 18 hospitals closed since 2014—12 in rural areas. Aging populations, low physician pay, and work-life concerns worsen the shortage. (The Beacon)

2. Due to healthcare worker shortages, patients in rural areas are facing longer wait times, with providers in these regions often able to manage 1,500 to 1,800 patients. A 2021 Missouri Hospital Association report revealed that 42% of hospitals cited workforce shortages as a major barrier in treating COVID-19 patients. (Columbia Missourian)

3. Florida faces a projected shortfall of 18K physicians by 2035, and proposed legislation (HB 6017 and SB 734) could worsen the crisis by expanding medical malpractice claims. With the highest malpractice rates in the U.S., this could drive physicians out of the state, increase healthcare costs, and harm access to care. (Yahoo!)

4. A National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) study shows nearly 140k nurses left the workforce since 2022, with 40% of respondents planning to leave by 2029 due to stress, burnout, and understaffing. The survey, covering 800,000 nurses, stresses the need for strategies to retain nurses amidst growing healthcare demand. (Mid Michigan Now)

🏥 HOSPITAL WATCH

1. Children’s Minnesota has reduced spending on travel nurses from $40M in 2023 to $17M in 2024 by overhauling nurse recruitment and retention, including mental health support, mentoring, and career training. (Kare 11)

2. Travis Air Force Base’s David Grant Medical Center has paused baby deliveries from April 8 to at least October 1, 2025, due to a nurse shortage. The California Board of Registered Nurses reports that the shortage is caused by an aging workforce, with a projected gap closure by 2028 due to higher nursing school enrollments and out-of-state migration. (San Francisco Chronicle)

⚕LET’S TALK

Global MedTeam offers one of the most impactful ways to address the healthcare workforce shortage, through connecting international nurses to leading healthcare systems in the US.

If you’re interested in being a part of the solution, get in touch.