To ease a doctor shortage, Mass. looks outside the U.S.

Physicians trained outside the U.S. will have a new path to practice medicine in Massachusetts. State officials are setting up a program that will provide medical licenses, with some oversight, for doctors credentialed in other countries. Lawmakers hope the move will ease medical care shortages, particularly in primary care.

Instead of repeating a residency or training program, these doctors would be allowed to work with a limited or restricted license, under supervision, in a community health center or hospital. They would receive mentoring for at least three years in places where it’s especially hard to find a primary care doctor and patients wait months for an appointment.

The Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition estimates there are hundreds of internationally-trained physicians living in the state who could be caring for tens of thousands of patients.

“It’s a win, win,” said Saira Asjad who was a primary care doctor in Pakistan before moving to Massachusetts. “This will bridge that gap between the health care need and the physicians who are not able to practice.”

State Sen. Jason Lewis, a Middlesex Democrat and long-time advocate for bringing internationally-trained physicians into the Massachusetts health care workforce, said doing so will improve the quality of care.

“There’s a lot of evidence that these physicians who speak other languages, who understand other cultures, provide excellent care to populations that share the same background and culture,” Lewis said.

The program was included in an economic development bill signed into law by Gov. Maura Healey in late November. The Board of Registration in Medicine will develop operating rules for the program. It could be a year before the first applicants begin work.

Michael Curry, president of the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers, said the program could become a model for nurses and other medical personnel educated in other countries. He anticipates strong interest.

“We’ll be a place that people come from all over the country and even all over the globe to come here to practice,” Curry said.

Just a handful of states have or are testing ways to use the skills of doctors trained outside the U.S. to boost access to primary care. But in one state, Tennessee, regulators balked at issuing applications citing concerns over how to verify applicants’ credentials.

Regulations in Massachusetts are expected to require that physicians trained abroad pass exams and secure the same credentials that doctors trained in the U.S. need to practice.