HR 5924 Introduced
On April 30, Reps. Wexler and Sensenbrenner introduced the long-desired Schedule A retrogression elimination bill.  The bill will allow many nurses and physical therapists, whose cases have been pending for many years, to have their cases timely processed.  The next step is to muster House support for the bill.
http://hammondlawgroup.blogspot.com/2008/04/hr-5924-is-live.html

Lofgren-Sensenbrenner Bill to Recpature GC’s
On April 25, Reps. Lofgren, Davis, and Sensenbrenner introduced H.R. 5882, to “recapture” employment-based (EB) green cards that Congress authorized in the past but that went unused before the end of past fiscal years due to government processing delays. Pundits estimate that approximately 218,000 unused EB green cards will be brought back into supply for all employment-based workers.
http://hammondlawgroup.blogspot.com/2008/04/lofgren-sensenbrenner-bill-to-recpature.html

NY Healthcare Symposium
HLG’s annual New York City Symposium on the Recruitment of Healthcare Workers took place on May 3, 2008.  The event was presented by all HLG Healthcare attorneys, along with several outside speakers.  The event was well-attended.  Stay tuned for our West Coast Symposium this fall.
http://www.hammondlawfirm.com/

AACN Fact Sheet Updated
This April 1 press release by the AACN concludes that the United States is in the midst of a nursing shortage that is expected to intensify as baby boomers age and the need for health care grows. Compounding the problem is the fact that nursing colleges and universities across the country are struggling to expand enrollment levels to meet the rising demand for nursing care.
http://www.aacn.nche.edu/Media/pdf/NrsgShortageFS.pdf

Healthcare Assoc. of NY State: Nurse Shortage Worsening
Buffalo Business First reports that “The association's Workforce Advocacy Survey of more than 125 hospitals across New York discovered that 80 percent of respondents noted RN shortages. The statewide vacancy rate for registered nurses increased to 8.8 percent in 2007, higher than the national rate of 8.5 percent and up from 6.38 percent in 2006.”
http://buffalo.bizjournals.com/buffalo/stories/2008/05/05/daily7.html

Finland Opens Its Arms to Filipino Healthcare Workers
Finland, one of the largest and most sparsely populated countries in Northern Europe, has opened its door to Filipino healthcare professionals such as nurses, practical nurses and caregivers.
http://www.asiaobserver.com/component/option,com_fireboard/Itemid,0/func,view/catid,10/id,5762/limit,6/limitstart,0&/

Cincinnati Health Care Jobs Get Tougher to Fill
Overall vacancy rates in 32 "hard-to-fill" health care positions increased to 6.3 percent in 2008 from 5.2 percent last year, according to the Greater Cincinnati Health Council. The vacancy rate for registered nurses increased to 7.3 percent from 5.7 percent, the health council reports in its 2008 vacancy report, which contains 2008 vacancy data from area hospitals.
http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2008/04/28/daily45.html

Nursing: The Recession-Proof Job Market
CNN Money reports that former finance workers are switching careers to answer the huge demand for new nurses.  To help fill the ranks, the nursing profession is trying to convince men, not just women, to become nurses. The profession is currently 90% female.
http://money.cnn.com/2008/03/25/news/economy/nurse/index.htm?postversion=2008032614

FCCPT Launches New Call Center
FCCPT has changed improved their Call Center.  The phone number remains the same, 703-684-8406. Calls now will be answered between 1 and 4 pm Monday through Friday.
http://www.fccpt.org/

PROCESSING DATES

SERVICE CENTER	PROCESSING DATES
California Service Center ( CSC )	Not Processing
AZ, CA, GU, HI, NV
Nebraska Service Center ( NSC )	February 15, 2007
AK, CO, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, ND, OH, OR, SD, UT, WA, WI, WY
Texas Service Center ( TSC )	July 19, 2007
AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NM, NC, OK, SC, TN, TX
Vermont Service Center (VSC)	April 1, 2006
CT, DE, DC, ME, MD, MA, NH, NJ, NY, PA, PR, RI, VT, VA, VI, WV

VISA BULLETIN  

	All Charge-ability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA- mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIP-PINES
Employ-ment -Based
1st	C	C	C	C	C
2nd	C	01JAN04	01JAN04	C	C
3rd	01MAR06	22MAR03	01NOV01	01JUL02	01MAR06
Other Workers	01JAN03	01JAN03	01JAN03	01JAN03	01JAN03
4th	C	C	C	C	C
Certain Religious Workers	C	C	C	C	C
5th	C	C	C	C	C

Hammond Law Group, LLC Event Calendar

June 25-28, 2008 AILA Annual Conference HLG Attorneys will be attending the AILA Annual Conference. Vancouver, BC, Canada About AILA