Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Democrats Threaten Federal Shutdown Over ICE Raids, Minnesota Shooting
The Hill: Democrats Escalate Opposition To DHS Funding In Bid To Rein In ICE
Democrats in both chambers are escalating their push to overhaul U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) following the fatal shooting of an unarmed woman by an ICE officer in Minneapolis. They’re doing so by vowing to oppose legislation funding the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) unless it includes tougher rules governing the conduct of ICE officers. (Lillis, 1/16)
More on the immigration crisis —
Becker's Hospital Review: Homeland Security Subpoenas Minnesota Health System For Employee Records
The Department of Homeland Security has issued a subpoena to Minneapolis-based Hennepin Healthcare for employee I-9 forms, the health system confirmed to Becker’s. The subpoena, issued Jan. 8, authorizes federal officials to inspect I-9 forms, which are documents used to verify employees’ identities and work eligibility. The forms contain sensitive personal information, including names, birth dates, addresses, Social Security numbers and copies of identification such as passports or driver’s licenses. (Condon, 1/15)
Minnesota Public Radio: Federal Judge Blocks USDA From Cutting SNAP Benefits In Minnesota
The recertification push by the USDA was in response to allegations of widespread fraud within the program, though the federal agency hasn’t provided any evidence to support the accusation. Immigration advocates also worried about the data collection that could be used to target immigrants for deportation. (Yang, 1/15)
The 19th: ICE Violence Against Women Is Increasingly Visible And Largely Untracked
A mother shoved to the ground in front of her children in the hallways of a immigration courthouse in New York. A young woman pulled from her car and handcuffed on a busy street in Key Largo, Florida. A child care worker dragged out of her workplace in Chicago, in front of parents and children. A pregnant woman yanked by one arm through the snowy streets of Minneapolis. (Norwood, 1/15)
The Washington Post: Medical Examiner Believes ICE Detainee Death Was Homicide, Recording Shows
When U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced the Jan. 3 death of detainee Geraldo Lunas Campos at a Texas detention camp, the agency said “staff observed him in distress,” and it gave no cause of death. An employee of El Paso County’s Office of the Medical Examiner told Lunas Campos’s daughter this week that, subject to results of a toxicology report, the office is likely to classify the death as a homicide, according to a recording of the conversation. (MacMillan, 1/15)
Also —
ProPublica: USDA Scientists Ordered To Investigate Foreign Researchers
The Trump administration is directing employees at the U.S. Department of Agriculture to investigate foreign scientists who collaborate with the agency on research papers for evidence of “subversive or criminal activity.” The new directive, part of a broader effort to increase scrutiny of research done with foreign partners, asks workers in the agency’s research arm to use Google to check the backgrounds of all foreign nationals collaborating with its scientists. (Song and Lerner, 1/16)
