LeadingAge joined thirteen long-term care organizations on October 17, 2023, to ask Secretary of State Antony Blinken to address the critical shortage of health care workers by ending the freeze on green cards and EB-3 visas impacting international nurses. These policies have created backlogs, hindering the recruitment of much-needed workers further exacerbating the staff shortages. This letter asks Secretary Blinken to prioritize nurse cases at embassies and consulates outside the U.S. for those nurses who have current priority dates; and to consider making the dates current effective for the December visa bulletin for at least the EB3 category, to allow nurses outside the U.S. to proceed with immigrant visa interviews.

The following organizations also signed the letter: Advancing Excellence in Long-Term Care Collaborative, ADVION (formerly National Association for the Support of Long Term Care), AMDA – The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine, American Assisted Living Nurses Association (AALNA), American Association of Post-Acute Care Nursing (AAPACN), American Health Care Association (AHCA), American Seniors Housing Association (ASHA), Argentum, Association of Jewish Aging Services (AJAS), LeadingAge, Lutheran Services in America, National Association of State Veterans Homes (NASVH), National Center for Assisted Living (NCAL), National Rural Health Association (NRHA), and the Pediatric Complex Care Association.