Nebraska is a great place to settle in the United States. Nebraska is one of the most affordable options, and the state is full of beautiful landscapes and five national parks, including Scotts Bluff National Monument, Chimney Rock National Historic Site, and Agate Fossil Beds National Monument. Perhaps most importantly for you as an International Medical Graduate (IMG), Nebraska is ranked as one of the best states for doctors, reporting the highest number of hospitals per every 10,000 residents, high wages, nationally accredited health departments, and very low malpractice insurance premiums.
With all these benefits, it's no wonder you are seeking medical licensure in Nebraska, but with IMG licensure can come challenges. If you are an IMG struggling to obtain your medical licensure in Nebraska, the Lento Law Firm can help. To get started, call our Professional License Defense Team today at 888-535-3686 or fill out our online form.
Nebraska Requirements for IMGs
Like all states in the U.S., Nebraska has specific laws that apply to IMGs seeking medical licensure in the state. The main difference between the licensure process for IMGs and U.S. and Canadian medical graduates is the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) Certification. This certification ensures that an IMG's medical education meets the standards of U.S. medical schools and that the IMG can safely practice medicine in Nebraska.
Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates Certification
ECFMG certification is the biggest task for IMGs seeking medical licensure in Nebraska. The certification has many requirements, steps, and different portals and offices you will work with to ensure your certification can be processed. Getting your certification requires working with EMCFG offices and your medical school, United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) officials, translators, and more. The core components are getting a medical diploma from an approved school, successfully completing the ECFMG certification application, passing medical examinations, and demonstrating English language proficiency.
Medical School Requirements
To obtain ECFMG certification, the World Federation for Medical Education and FAIMER must approve your medical school. These organizations developed a database of all international medical schools, the World Directory of Medical Schools (World Directory), allowing you to see your academic institution's accreditation status.
Application for ECFMG Certification
ECFMG's certification application is lengthy. You will begin it by submitting the first portion of the Electronic Portfolio of International Credentials (EPIC) system in the ECMFG online portal. As mentioned above, information will be required from several parties, such as your medical school. If your medical school does not conduct classes or business in English, you will need to have documents translated and properly verified. ECFMG has strict rules for translations and verification. You must follow these instructions carefully, or documents will not be accepted, and your certification may be delayed.
Medical Examination Requirements
There are two USMLEs you will be required to pass to obtain certification: USMLE Step 1 and Step 2. These exams are generally taken at different points during your medical school career, and timing will vary based on your institution.
Language Requirements
Of course, to practice medicine in Nebraska, you will need English language proficiency. ECFMG will typically ask applications to submit a passing score on the Occupational English Test (OET) to meet the language proficiency requirement.
Nebraska IMG ECFMG Certification Issues
Getting your ECFMG certification is the biggest item on your checklist toward becoming a Nebraska licensed physician. As discussed above, ECFMG certification is a multi-step process, and you need to ensure you are on top of all the requirements and deadlines and address any issues immediately, or you could face serious issues that would delay or result in certification rejection. When any sort of major issue arises with your ECFMG certification, it will usually fall into the category of what ECFMG and USMLE refer to as irregular behavior. Irregular behavior is really just another way of saying misconduct. Still, ECFMG officially defines it as "the actions or attempted actions on the part of applicants, examinees, potential applications, others when solicited by an applicant and/or examinee, a medical school official, or any other person or entity that would or could subject the examination, certification or other processes, programs or services of ECFMG.
Most irregular behaviors relate to dishonest or misleading statements or omissions in the certification application or testing process. If you accidentally make a mistake in your application, it may show up as an inconsistency in your answers on the ECFMG side and can imply that you are lying or have something to hide. Being incredibly careful in your application is, therefore, very important. This is arguably the most important application of your life, so please treat it as such. If you make an error in your application and are facing backlash from ECFMG, the Lento Law Firm can help you quickly rectify the situation.
The most common ECFMG certification issues our Professional License Defense Team sees include:
- Submission of falsified or altered documents
- Failing to comply with USMLE requirements
- Failure to follow ECFMG policies, procedures, or rules
- Falsification of information on the application or other ECFMG submissions
If ECFMG suspects that you have participated in any of the above or other irregular behaviors, its staff will assess whether the issue is worth investigating further. For example, if they suspect there has been a typographical error, they might reach out to you to clarify. If they suspect the issue is more than a simple error, they may refer the issues to the ECFMG Medical Education Credentials Committee (Committee) for investigation.
If a potential issue or allegation is sent to the Committee, the Committee will notify you immediately to tell you an investigation has been opened to review the irregular behavior. The notification will include a few things:
- A statement of the allegations against you
- The specific policies that you have allegedly violated
- A copy of the ECFMG Policies and Procedures Regarding Irregular Behavior
- A request that you provide a written explanation of the behavior or events to the Committee
- A deadline for submitting your response
- A statement that you have the right to be represented by an attorney
- A statement that you have the right to request a hearing
There is a lot of information to digest from the notification, and you do not need to go through this alone. As soon as you are notified of the allegations against you, contact the Lento Law Firm. It may seem relatively simple, especially if you made an innocent mistake or relied on false or misinformation, to just shoot back a quick response to the Committee. You should not be communicating with the Committee in any way without the Lento Law Firm attorney.
You have very few opportunities to defend yourself in front of the Committee. With language and cultural differences, having an attorney from our Professional License Defense Team present your case is in your best interest. Our seasoned attorneys frequently represent IMGs in front of the Committee and know how to put forth the strongest defense possible and quickly address your ECFMG issue. The Lento Law Firm attorney will fully prepare your defense, from the written response to arguing your case before the Committee in a hearing, if that is the best option in your case.
After you and the Lento Law Firm have put forth your case, the Committee will make a decision on whether disciplinary action is necessary. Our Professional License Defense attorneys have often rectified the situation for our IMG clients without any negative consequences. In the event you are found guilty of an irregular behavior, the punishments can be severe, including:
- Temporarily barring you from future examinations
- Permanently barring you from future examinations
- Barring you from ECFMG programs and services
- Invalidating the results of your USMLE examinations
- Withholding or rejecting your ECFMG certification
- Reporting the behaviors to the UESMLE Committee for Individualized Review, Federal of State Medical Boards, and other relevant state or international medical licensing authorities
If you have been found guilty of an irregular behavior, there are some limited situations in which you can appeal the decision. Generally, you can only appeal your case if, after the Committee's decision, new evidence that was not previously considered comes to light. Remember that you only have 30 days after receiving the Committee's decision by mail to make an appeal, so even though emotions are still high, you will need to act right away.
It is not too late if an attorney has not yet represented you. You have worked so hard to get where you are today, and giving up now on your dreams of becoming a Nebraska licensed physician would be a mistake. Just because the appeals process is difficult hardly means you shouldn't pursue it, and the Lento Law Firm Professional License Defense Team regularly gets better outcomes for our IMG clients on appeal. If you decide to appeal, the Lento Law Firm attorney will request the appeal with the Committee, and it will be scheduled to hear your case at its next meeting.
Nebraska IMG ECFMG Issues and Visa Status
Having ECFMG issues is stressful, and your legal immigration status may be the last thing on your mind, but if you are in the U.S. on a J-1 visa through the ECFMG Exchange Sponsorship Program, you could have problems. When ECFMG vouches for IMGs with the U.S. government, it is obligated to ensure the behavior of its IMGs is positive.
Only in the most severe cases, for example, where there are criminal charges or allegations of sexual abuse or exploitation, will ECFMG be obligated to report such actions to the U.S. Department of State immediately. Other lesser issues, though, if resulting in a denial of ECFMG certification, may also result in termination of your J-1 visa. Getting your situation sorted as quickly as possible should be a top priority, particularly if this visa is your only path to staying in the U.S.
Nebraska IMG USMLE Issues
USMLE issues are those that are directly related to the USMLE or the application process for the exams. When you have a USMLE issue, you can also expect to have an ECFMG issue because USMLE is required for certification. Numerous behaviors can cause you to have USMLE issues. Most Nebraska IMGs dealing with a USMLE issue have been accused of one of the following actions:
- Registering for a USMLE that you are not eligible to sit for
- Soliciting exam materials
- Reproducing exam materials
- Attempting to or discussing exam content with former or potential examinees
- Providing false information on your USMLE exam application
- Impersonating another applicant and taking the exam on their behalf
- Providing unauthorized assistance to examinees at any point before, during, or after the exam
- Taking notes into the testing center
- Failure to comply with any USMLE rules, policies, or instructions
- Taking photos or videos during the examination
- Cheating on the exam
- Attempting to manipulate exam scores
While you are working through the process of rectifying the USMLE issue, there are a few things you can expect to happen:
- Your examination application will not be processed
- You will not be permitted to sit for the exam
- Your exam results will be withheld
The USMLE disciplinary process is similar to the ECFMG process in that you will receive a notification from its Committee for Individualized Review (CIR) with the allegations against you, a citation to the policy you have violated, and instructions on defending yourself. USMLE notification will automatically give you a hearing date and a deadline for submitting a written response.
As with the ECFMG process, the Lento Law Firm attorney has the right to represent you. Your Professional License Defense Team attorney will prepare all written documentation and argue your case before the CIR.
Nebraska IMG Licensing Representation
When your Nebraska medical licensure is on the line, you need the Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team. We will fight tooth and nail to resolve your ECFMG and USMLE issues so you can get back on track and, hopefully, get you practicing in no time. Call us today at 888-535-3686 or contact us online.
