TITLE 39

HEALTH AND SAFETY

CHAPTER 61

IDAHO CONRAD J-1 VISA WAIVER AND NATIONAL INTEREST WAIVER PROGRAMS

39-6105.  Definitions. As used in this chapter:

(1)  "Applicant" means a health care facility that seeks to employ a physician and is requesting state support of a J-1 visa waiver or national interest waiver.

(2)  "Area of underservice" means a health professional shortage area in primary care or mental health, a medically underserved area, or a medically underserved population federally designated by the secretary of health and human services.

(3)  "Department" means the Idaho department of health and welfare.

(4)  "Employment contract" means a legally binding agreement between the applicant and the physician named in the J-1 visa waiver or national interest waiver application that contains all terms and conditions of employment, including but not limited to the salary, benefits, length of employment and any other consideration owing under the agreement. The employment contract must meet all state and federal criteria, including labor and immigration rules.

(5)  "Federal fiscal year" means the twelve (12) months that commence the first day of October in each year and close on the thirtieth day of September of the following year.

(6)  "Flex" means the applications that may be submitted six (6) months following the beginning of each federal fiscal year for J-1 visa waiver physicians to work in areas without a federal shortage area designation.

(7)  "Full time" means a working week of a minimum of forty (40) hours at one (1) or more health care facilities.

(8)  "Health care facility" means an entity with an active Idaho taxpayer identification number doing business or proposing to do business in the practice location where the physician would be employed, whose stated purposes include the delivery of primary medical or mental health care.

(9)  "Interested government agency" means an agency that has the authority from the United States department of state to submit requests for J-1 visa waivers of foreign physician petitioners on behalf of public interest.

(10) "J-1 visa" means an entrance permit into the United States for a foreign trained physician who is a nonimmigrant admitted under section 101(a)(15)(J) of the United States immigration and nationality act or who acquired such status or who acquired exchange visitor status under the act.

(11) "J-1 visa waiver" means a federal action that waives the requirement for a foreign physician in the United States on a J-1 visa to return to his home country for a two (2) year period following medical residency training.

(12) "National interest waiver" means an exemption from the labor certification process administered by the United States department of labor for foreign physicians whose will to stay in the United States and work in an area of underservice in Idaho is determined to be in the public interest by the Idaho department of health and welfare.

(13) "New start" means a health care facility, as defined in subsection (8) of this section, that has been in existence for twelve (12) months or less.

(14) "Petitioning physician" means the foreign physician, named in the J-1 visa waiver or national interest waiver application, who requires a waiver to remain in the United States to practice medicine.

(15) "Primary care" means a medical doctor or doctor of osteopathy licensed in pediatrics, family medicine, internal medicine, obstetrics, gynecology, general surgery or psychiatry.

(16) "Specialist" means a medical doctor or doctor of osteopathy in any specialty or subspecialty other than pediatrics, family medicine, internal medicine, obstetrics, gynecology, general surgery or psychiatry.

(17) "Unmet need" means a vacancy or shortage of primary care or specialist physicians experienced by a community or population, as defined by federally designated health professional shortage areas or medically underserved areas/populations or as demonstrated by additional data and information required by the department.

(18) "Vacancy" means a full-time physician practice opportunity in the delivery of health care services.

History:

[39-6105, added 2004, ch. 128, sec. 1, p. 438; am. 2009, ch. 106, sec. 5, p. 326; am. 2014, ch. 61, sec. 1, p. 144; am. 2017, ch. 72, sec. 2, p. 172; am. 2023, ch. 31, sec. 2, p. 150.]