Protest HR 3722 (Undoc. Alien Emergency Medical Assistance)

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U.S. House Representative Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) introduced the Undocumented Alien Emergency Medical Assistance Amendments of 2004. This legislation would "turn hospitals into deportation centers by forcing ... officials to report sick and injured undocumented immigrants to immigration authorities. If passed, the bill could result in the deaths of undocumented immigrants who avoid medical attention for fear of deportation" (Joshua Hoyt, executive director, Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (http://www.icirr.org/)).

See the text of the legislation here (http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?c108:1:./temp/~c108qLocuP::). (If that doesn't work, go to http://thomas.loc.gov/ and type "HR3722" in the "Bill Number" search box.)

Please contact your congressional representative and let him or her know your opinion on this issue. Contact info can be found here: http://www.house.gov/

Among other things, this legislation would mandate that hospitals ascertain an individual's immigration status and that hospitals are not required to provide care that "involves organ transplantation or other extraordinary medical treatment" or care that exceeds $50,000.

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My concern is that if hospitals are forced to keep this type of documentation, they will become increasingly leery of treating people who appear to be immigrants. Additionally, given the high cost of health care, $50,000 is a very low figure.

I think that most of us here would probably agree that there is a broad spectrum of health care available to the U.S. population, and that marginalized groups receive disparate treatment in this respect. My fear is that the disparity will only increase if this legislation is passed. It will offer an excuse for hospitals to turn away those who are believed to be immigrants, whether they are citizens or not. Or they will offer sub-standard care.

Some years back, my grandmother was hit by a bus. She was taken to a county hospital because she was assumed to be an indigent. Once there, she tried to communicate to the staff, but she had been seriously injured and/or they weren't listening very carefully. Although she understood and spoke English, the health care workers assumed that she did not.

We did not know her whereabouts for almost a full week.

I believe that were she white, this never would have happened.

[Faithless]

Will do!

Seems like restrictive language:
Congress finds the following:

(1) The provision of medical care by public or private health care providers to undocumented aliens is appropriate only--

(A) to protect the health and safety of United States citizens;

(B) to save the life of an undocumented alien in a life-threatening medical emergency; and

(C) to stabilize an emergency medical condition so that an undocumented alien can be repatriated for medical treatment in the alien's own country.
(1)(A) Sounds like they're saying that they'll help the undocumented alien if they have SARS or something.

(1)(B) Jesus, you'd hope people would at least do that.

(1)(C) Just another way of making people pack-up-and-go-home.

[hooligan]

Will do!

Seems like restrictive language:

(1)(A) Sounds like they're saying that they'll help the undocumented alien if they have SARS or something.

(1)(B) Jesus, you'd hope people would at least do that.

(1)(C) Just another way of making people pack-up-and-go-home.
you know what? how the hell are they going to get emergency help while waiting to be repatiated? it just means more people are going to die needlessly.

[Faithless]

I sent a letter to a representative in my area that used the arguments to opposing the language from here:

Letter Opposing the Undocumented Alien Emergency Medical Assistance Amendments (http://www.apha.org/legislative/legislative/letters/undoc_alien.htm)
...
We believe this legislation will endanger the health of undocumented immigrants and urge you to resist efforts to bring this legislation to the House floor for consideration.

APHA has adopted a number of policies over the years advocating for access to comprehensive affordable health care for all residents of the United States, regardless of legal resident or immigration status. We strongly oppose legislative proposals that would discourage undocumented immigrants from seeking needed medical care. APHA does not believe that medical care providers should be required to take part in policing activities surrounding a patient's immigration status.

H.R. 3722 would put medical care providers in an awkward position by requiring them to ask questions about patients' immigration status, and subsequently require them to fingerprint, photograph and ultimately report them to the authorities. The bill would also likely discourage individuals who need immediate medical attention from seeking treatment for fear of being turned over to immigration officials. At a time when foreign-born infectious diseases like SARS, Tuberculosis and Influenza pose a significant risk to the entire population, the bill could prevent medical care providers from rapidly identifying and promptly treating infected undocumented immigrants who do not seek immediate medical attention. We strongly oppose this legislation.

The arguments were in a letter from the American Public Health Association.

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Sample letter, feel free to cut and paste or revise and send:

Dear Rep. __________:

I am writing to voice my opposition to HR 3722, the Undocumented Alien Emergency Medical Assistance Amendments of 2004. The proposed legislation will put an undue burden on health care providers, will further increase the disparity of medical treatment for immigrants and people of color, and may also possibly adversely affect public health.

Hospitals should not be mandated to become involved in immigration affairs. Requiring that they serve as agents of the CIS is in direct conflict with their purpose to serve the needs of the community.

If undocumented persons are unwilling to seek medical assistance because they fear deportation, they may postpone seeing a physician until their situation becomes critical. This could result in serious complications or death.

Moreover, if health care providers are reluctant to provide services for undocumented persons, or are permitted by law to refuse services over $50,000, the net effect may be that care will be restricted or withheld for all persons who are suspected of being illegal aliens. This would increase the disparity in health care services for immigrants and other persons of color.

Additionally, refusing care to some of our most marginalized residents could have a serious public health impact. If individuals with contagious illnesses do not seek care, they could inadvertently cause the spread of disease to others.

I ask that you take a stand in opposition to this legislation.

Sincerely yours,

[Name and full street address]

[nifer]

done!

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Happy to report that this resolution failed on May 18, 2004. The vote was 88-331. (Howard Coble was in favor of this bill, not surprisingly.)

However, I was curious about this text in the bill status report:

5/18/2004 12:21pm:
Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.

Anybody know what that means?

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d108:h.r.03722: