More Canadian Health Workers Licensed in the U.S.

REGINA, SK: New data obtained by SecondStreet.org shows that California, Texas, Florida, Illinois and Massachusetts have issued 8,237 licenses to nurses and doctors with Canadian mailing addresses. This research builds on SecondStreet.org’s previous examination into licenses issued by nine states along the Canada/U.S. border, bringing the total number to at least 18,025.

“Picture a sold out NHL-sized arena. That’s how many Canadian health care workers we’re talking about,” said SecondStreet.org Communications Director Dom Lucyk. “One might think that Canadian workers are choosing to work in the U.S. because of money. Sometimes that’s true, but when we surveyed Ontario nurses who work in Michigan, the top reason they decided to work abroad was actually availability of work. Many wanted full-time jobs like the ones they found in Michigan, not part-time jobs in Ontario.”

SecondStreet.org looked into California, Texas, Florida, Illinois and Massachusetts as they are popular U.S. destinations. Readers should note that some of the 18,025 workers may not actively be working in the U.S. Some of these workers may have retired, returned to Canada or haven’t yet moved to the U.S. Conversely, not captured in this research are workers who have moved to the U.S. and no longer use a Canadian mailing address.

Key highlights from SecondStreet.org’s new research include:

• Texas attracted the most Canadian health care workers (6,063) among the states examined. However, 4,468 of those licenses did not specify which Canadian province.
• Ontario health care workers were most likely to obtain licenses in the five U.S. states (1,905). 
• U.S. states issued a low number of nursing licenses (304) to Quebec workers. This may be due to the province’s large private health care sector providing workers with more choice and helping to retain them in Canada. Alternatively, the language barrier may play a role.
  

CA = California, TX = Texas, FL = Florida, IL = Illinois, MA = Massachusetts
*Illinois’s public state registry accessed September 19, 2023

CA = California, TX = Texas, FL = Florida, IL = Illinois, MA = Massachusetts
*The data shows Texas has also issued 947 licenses to doctors born and educated in Canada who provided a U.S. mailing address
** Illinois’s public state registry accessed September 19, 2023

“While these workers rejected working for Canada’s government-run health care system, new private clinics that are popping up may be able to offer these workers the type of work environment they’re looking for,” added Lucyk. “One thing is certain, the status quo isn’t working for thousands of doctors and nurses. Ultimately, Canada’s health care worker shortage harms patient care.”

To view the raw data for each state, see below:

California – click here for nurses (file 1 and file 2) and here for doctors

Texas – click here for nurses and here for doctors

Illinois – click here to see their public state registry

Florida – click here

Massachusetts – click here