Canadian medical regulators claim American doctors are leaving the U.S. in droves, allegedly due to President Donald Trump’s policies. According to the Medical Council of Canada, the number of U.S. doctors creating accounts on physiciansapply.ca—required to practice medicine in Canada—has jumped 750% in the past seven months compared to the same period last year.
They reported 615 new accounts, up from 71. The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario says 116 U.S.-trained doctors received Canadian licenses in the first quarter of 2025, a 50% increase over previous quarters.
Recruiters, like CanAm Physician Recruiting CEO John Philpott, claim doctors are eager to leave the U.S., allegedly embarrassed to identify as American. Philpott quoted doctors as saying, “I have to leave this country. It is not what it used to be.” Michael, an American physician now in Canada, claimed the U.S. is “increasingly radicalized toward the right” and accused Trump’s policies of promoting “vigilantism.”
British Columbia also reports a rise in applications from U.S.-trained doctors, with 28 receiving licenses last year—triple the previous year’s figure.
However, critics of these claims point out that the data lacks context. The reported numbers, while showing a percentage increase, remain small compared to the total number of practicing doctors in the U.S. With over one million licensed physicians in America, even a few hundred relocating is a tiny fraction, not a mass exodus.
The leftist narrative tying this trend directly to President Trump’s policies ignores broader factors, such as global mobility trends, economic opportunities, and personal lifestyle choices. The Canadian medical system faces chronic shortages and regularly recruits doctors from abroad, making it unsurprising that more U.S. doctors might seek licenses there.
