The nursing shortage in the United States is expected to intensify over the next decade as more experienced nurses retire and medical demands rise. In response, several large-scale recruitment drives have emerged that actively seek to hire thousands of nurses domestically and internationally through 2025—many offering H-1B or permanent residency sponsorship. This blog explores some of the biggest nursing workforce development programs on the horizon.
American Mobile Healthcare Initiative
A non-profit coalition comprised of major hospital systems, the American Mobile Healthcare Initiative (AMHI) aims to recruit 20,000 nurses to rural and underserved communities by 2025. AMHI partners like Stanford Health Care and Cedars-Sinai provide competitive salaries, sign-on bonuses of up to $30,000, relocation assistance, and commitment to long-term sponsorship for careers of three years or longer.
International recruitment focuses on experienced registered nurses (RNs) from countries like the Philippines, India, and Nigeria through H-1B and immigrant visas. AMHI outlines a clear path to permanent residency for those filling essential healthcare roles. The program prioritizes specialties facing the most critical shortfalls such as emergency room, pediatric, and operating room nursing.
Unity Health Nursing Fellowship
Unity Health, a consortium of nonprofit Catholic healthcare providers operating over 200 hospitals nationwide, launched a $350 million nursing workforce program in 2023. The fellowship model targets new nursing school graduates from any country and funds their education costs in accelerated BSN programs at select American universities.
Upon obtaining RN licensure, fellows enter a 2-year clinical residency and fellowship curriculum with primary placements at Unity Health facilities across the southern and western states. Annual compensation starts at $60,000 with benefits and the opportunity to qualify for H-1B sponsorship at program completion. Future goals involve expanding to master’s level fellowships in nurse practitioner and clinical nurse leader specialties.
VA Nursing NOW Campaign
As the largest integrated healthcare system in the U.S., the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) unveiled an ambitious goal to recruit 5,000 additional nurses by the end of 2025 through its Nursing NOW campaign. This initiative focuses on strengthening nurse recruitment pipelines to the 163 VA medical centers nationwide.
A major thrust involves attracting foreign-educated nurses through fast-tracked Green Card sponsorship pathways. Eligible international nurse candidates may qualify for permanent residence sponsorship after only 6-12 months of full-time employment at the VA. Additionally, new nurse graduates can access subsidized higher degree programs including MSN and DNP with a service commitment to the VA.
Frontline Heroes Program
Established through a multi-state public-private partnership, the Frontline Heroes program looks to recruit 10,000 entry-level nurses prepared at the associate degree level or higher from 2023-2025 across 13 Midwestern and Southern states.
Participating healthcare employers include Ascension, Community Health Systems, and HCA Healthcare, employing over 3,000 hospitals between them. The program funds nursing scholarships up to $10,000 per candidate and commits to covering costs for LPN/LVN-to-RN bridge programs. Employment includes a minimum 3-year contract to be eligible for H-1B visa sponsorship consideration or long-term Green Card processing through PERM labor certification.
HealthWORKS Nursing Co-op
Coordinated through HealthWORKS, a consortium of safety net community health centers and public hospitals throughout California and Arizona, this growing initiative matches new nursing school graduates with 12-18-month job residencies beginning in 2023.
The Nursing Co-op provides a $10,000 educational scholarship, precepted clinical training across multiple care settings, and guaranteed full-time employment upon licensure with starting pay between $65,000-$75,000 depending on location. At completion, co-op participants gain credentialing experience to sit for national specialty certifications as well as consideration for H-1B sponsorship renewals for up to 6 years if pursuing advanced practice degrees.
Florida Center for Nursing Expansion
As one of the largest state-run nursing workforce programs, the Florida Center for Nursing (FCN) grew its budget by 25% to $150 million in 2023. Strategic goals include welcoming 2,000 new nurses to Florida over the next three years.
FCN directly recruits internationally through partnerships with foreign nursing schools approved by the Florida Board of Nursing. Upon arrival for an accelerated BSN or MSN program at a participating Florida university, eligible nurse candidates may qualify for scholarships up to $20,000 as well as sponsorship for student J-1 or H-1B visas which may transition to green cards at FCN healthcare employers statewide.
Conclusion
As evidenced by these wide-ranging examples of initiatives across the private and public sectors, there is enormous momentum behind strengthening nursing human capital in the United States. Future nurses would be wise to explore the availability of generous hiring incentives, education funding, dedicated mentorship, and potential visa sponsorship being mobilized to replenish the nursing workforce through 2025 and beyond.