American doctors eye Canada as U.S. health care faces ‘uncertainty’

As political tensions and health-care layoffs roil the United States, a surge of American doctors may be looking to make a move north — and provinces are taking notice.

As political tensions and health-care layoffs roil the United States, a surge of American doctors appears to be looking north for new opportunities — and provinces and Canadian recruiters are taking notice.

With Canada’s doctor shortage still growing, provinces and health-care agencies are looking to tap into this interest, hoping to bring in more skilled professionals to help fill gaps in patient care.

The Medical Council of Canada (MCC) told Global News the number of U.S. medical graduates opening accounts on physiciansapply.ca — a key step toward obtaining a medical licence in Canada — has risen 583 per cent between October 2024 and March 2025 compared to the same period last year.

“In addition, we have observed a slight increase in inquiries from U.S. medical graduates to our service desk. Over the past two months, our agents have received approximately 100 calls per month from U.S.-based locations, marking a 33 per cent increase compared to September and October 2024,” an MCC spokesperson told Global News in an email on Tuesday.

This trend is crucial as Canada continues to face significant health-care challenges, including physician shortages, health-care worker burnout and long emergency room wait times.

The potential influx of U.S. doctors presents an opportunity to ease some of these pressures, filling much-needed gaps in Canada’s health-care system, explained Michelle Flynn, COO of CanAm Physician Recruiting, a health-care recruitment firm based in Nova Scotia.

The firm helps doctors navigate Canada’s licensing and credentialing systems, working with them to make sure they’re properly certified to practice in Canada.

While they help physicians from all over the world, many of their clients are based in the U.S.