CONGRESS PASSES NURSING RELIEF FOR DISADVANTAGED AREAS REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2005
On December 6, 2006, the Senate passed the Nursing Relief for Disadvantaged Areas Reauthorization Act of 2005 (H.R. 1285). Passed by the House on June 20, 2006, the bill extends for three years the Nursing Relief for Disadvantaged Areas Act of 1999, which provides for up to 500 foreign nurses to come to the U.S. annually on H-1C visas to work in medically underserved areas.

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c109:H.R.1285:

CGFNS TO ALLOW E-MAIL CONTACT
Effective January 1, 2007 e-mail will be accepted at the Contact Us section of www.cgfns.org from 6AM to 4PM EST Monday through Friday. It remains to be seen if this means of communication will be an effective way to connect with CGFNS.
http://www.cgfns.org/sections/announcements/

HLG’s HEALTHCARE AND IMMIGRATION BLOG
In December 2006 the Blog focused on the efforts of Congress to eliminate retrogression. Once it became apparent that Congress would fail to cure the retrogression crises in December, the Blog took a look at the legislative landscape in 2007. The Blog averages several hundred readers per day and has become the headquarters for breaking information on retrogression.
http://hammondlawgroup.blogspot.com/

USCIS ISSUES FAVORABLE H-1 MEMO
The USCIS released a Memorandum that confirms and clarifies several unresolved issues in a favorable manner for foreign nationals.
http://www.hammondlawfirm.com/alerts/12.20.2006_alert.htm

REMINDER: CGFNS RAISING PRICES
The Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS) announced that, beginning on January 1, 2007, an Order Processing Fee of $50 will be charged in addition to the normal service fee. The fee will cover energy, transportation, and postal increases as well as electronic management of records. This will allow for enhancements for the secure transmission of documents.
http://www.cgfns.org/sections/about/news/news/2006/11-15-06_order.shtml

LIBYAN DEATH SENTENCES SHOCK WORLD MEDICAL ASSOCIATION AND INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL OF NURSES
In a joint statement about December’s decision by the Libyan court, the International Council of Nurses and the World Medical Association said: "We are appalled by the decision of the Libyan court to sentence the five Bulgarian nurses and the Palestinian doctor to death.”
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=59409&nfid=35526

PROCESSING TIMES CHART