IMGs, other visa holders in Michigan free to drive again

Michigan's secretary of state offices are now accepting driver's license applications from visa holders, a relief for many international medical graduates in the state.

Under a state law that took effect Jan. 22, doctors in Michigan on a visa could not get a new driver's license. That's because a law intended to prevent illegal immigrants from obtaining a driver's license also prevented legal residents on student or work visas, including physicians, from getting a license.

The Michigan State Medical Society and other organizations lobbied state legislators in support of bills restoring driving privileges to the state's legal visitors, such as IMGs with J-1 or H1-B visas.

The MSMS said the state, under heavy pressure by business and community leaders, responded quickly to correct the situation.

In February, the Legislature passed a measure that allows legal immigrants to get a driver's license. Gov. Jennifer Granholm promptly signed it into law. The law retained regulations prohibiting illegal immigrants from obtaining driver's licenses or state IDs. The medical society was pleased with the legislative response.

"Restricting the issue of a driver's license not only creates a hardship on the individual but also deprives communities from attracting talented medical professionals to provide care," society President AppaRao Mukkamala, MD, said in a statement.

About 400,000 university students and foreign workers were said to be affected by the law, including many IMGs, who represent 34% of the 42,000 physicians in Michigan, according to American Medical Association data.

Legal action stopped

When the law changed, the American Civil Liberties Union dropped a lawsuit against the state filed on behalf of six foreign workers, including an IMG, who were ineligible to drive legally under the original policy.

If the law had not been changed, many IMGs would have been left waiting for buses, a big problem for physicians on call, Dr. Mukkamala said.

"Imagine hearing this: 'The doctor will see you as soon as the bus arrives,' " he said.

Gregory Forzley, MD, chair of the medical society's board of directors, said IMGs are particularly important when it comes to filling Michigan's primary care residency positions.

"This would have been a black eye on Michigan, a deterrent for IMGs to come and train and potentially practice here," he said.

That's a blow he is glad the state will not face, he added.