The bill exempts healthcare professionals from the proposed $100,000 H-1B petition fee and prevents additional costs beyond those already established under federal law
Exempt healthcare professionals from the proposed $100,000 H-1B petition fee and block additional costs beyond those already established under federal law.
Occurrences
Evidence
AP reported that a Boston federal judge struck down the Trump administration's $100,000 H-1B fee, finding the executive branch exceeded its authority and that the charge functioned like an unauthorized tax. AP also noted that a separate Chamber of Commerce case had left the higher fee in effect until September 2026.
AP reported that the states challenging the fee said it made it harder to hire doctors, teachers, and medical workers, and that the American Medical Association called the ruling a victory for patients. The article also said the government had received only 85 fee payments by mid-February.
Assessments
The promised outcome was only partly achieved. A federal judge blocked the proposed $100,000 H-1B fee as unauthorized, which advanced the goal of preventing extra costs beyond federal law and indirectly benefited healthcare staffing. But the policy was not fully settled because parallel litigation left the higher fee in effect in another case until at least September 2026, and there is no evidence here that Salazar secured a healthcare-specific exemption or was the decisive actor behind the block. Under federal candidate-credit standards, that supports partial rather than full delivery.