No maybe about it, the Senate bill offered unlimited entry to foreign-trained nurses until 2014. Quite an incentive to those contemplating nursing school.
Hello Nurse! - Is the U.S. stealing health care workers from abroad?
For experience, I can tell you that there is a serious nursing shortage in the U.S. Nursing schools have waiting lists for students who get accepted. One of the reasons is that there is a shortage of nursing teachers. There are lots of opportunities for nurses, or for any health care provider in this country. Also, for certain types of health care workers, physical therapists I believe, are on a green card short list. These professionals are considered to be in critical short supply and don't have to go through the labor certification process - they practically get green cards right away! Also, Canada supplies a lot of nurses to the U.S. they only need a NAFTA TN visa. Those are easy to get, and unlimited in the number issued and in the number of times it can be renewed, so employment in the U.S. is easy for Canadian nurses. Heck, on the college campuses there, most of the recruiters are from U.S. hospitals.