> E.g. a lot of rural and VA hospitals are staffed by H1B physicians.

Doctors, pilots and other genuinely essential professions are well covered by a number of other visa categories, such as EB-2.

I don't think the EB-2 is an alternative. If the applicant is outside the US, the process takes ~3 years to get the applicant into the US and up to 4-12 years if the applicant is Chinese or Indian.

I don't think the EB-2 process allows the applicant to stay within the US while waiting for the priority date to become current so staying in the US and working during that 3-12 year period won't work without another visa type.