DES MOINES, Iowa — A new report claims U.S. hospitals have deported undocumented patients in order to save money.
A report by the Center for Social Justice and New York Lawyers for the Public Interest noted that within the past five years at least 600 immigrants were involuntarily removed from healthcare facilities to other medical facilities in their home country. Some of those patients died in hospitals that were not equipped to meet their needs, the Associated Press reports.
The Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act requires all hospitals to screen and treat all patients, regardless of their health insurance coverage or immigration status. However, once a patient is in stabilized condition, the healthcare facility technically is not required to continue care, Medical News Today reports.
Currently, the American Hospital Association does not monitor hospitals that deport immigrants; however, the organization has mentioned a need for better policy and care for undocumented patients.
