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by David Gray, ACA Legislative Affairs Liaison
On June 25, 1997, the United States Information Agency (USIA) notified
all sponsors of the Camp Counselor Exchange Visitor Program that
internationals working at camps through this program must not be
employed as a "camp nurse or infirmary assistant, or in any other
capacity as a health care practitioner". Since enforcement of this
rule could have an impact on camps, the Association has undertaken a review
of the issue. This is an ongoing review, but we thought it appropriate
to share some of the information we have gathered to date.
This "new" policy is consistent with existing regulations in
the Camp Counselor Exchange Visitor Program, which disallow employment
for kitchen, maintenance, and similar support staff. Thus the rule is
an enforcement of existing regulation, not a new rule.
Of course, separate rules of the Summer/Work Travel Program do
allow placement of foreign "bona-fide university students" at
camps for "commercial positions". These positions include support
staff like kitchen, maintenance and office positions as well as "nurse's
aides and orderlies". However, you may not bring in professional
foreign-registered nurses under this program. Camps, therefore, may bring
in nursing students, but not nursing professionals for camp positions.
The U.S. Departments of Labor and Health and Human Services (HHS) have
both testified as recently as November 1997 against legislation which
would create just 500 visas for foreign-registered nurses to be employed
as hospital nurses. The U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service has
just completed investigations and multiple arrests relating to fraudulent
use of the H visa to employ foreign-registered nurses in nursing homes
in the southwestern U.S. The American Nurses Association, which has historically
taken positions consistent with Labor and HHS, has recently expressed
concern over foreign-registered nurses illegally employed as nurse's aides.
It appears that the government as a whole, together with the nursing
industry, is taking a unified stance, and that use of foreign-registered
nurses in other than a clearly authorized manner is likely to be considered
more than just a technical violation of law. Affected sponsors (placement
agencies) have all indicated their intent to follow the new USIA directive.
ACA has commenced discussions with the Association of Camp Nurses (ACN)
to ascertain if an agreement on a proposed change, to be advanced by ACA,
can be reached which would provide camps a degree of relief. The proposed
change under consideration would seek to allow foreign-registered nurses,
under the direct supervision of a state-licensed registered nurse or physician,
to be employed at camps as "health aides" to fulfill duties
consistent with state law. Very preliminary discussions with ACN and camps
indicate that such an agreement might be possible, and that such a change
would be safe, reasonable, and have minimal impact on labor markets. ACA
is currently developing language for consideration by the ACN and the
ACA Board of Directors. We would then seek sponsorship in Washington.
ACA will keep you appraised of further developments as they occur.
Originally published in the 1998 Winter issue
of The CampLine.
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