Attorneys Sue Minnesota To Continue Medical Care of Undocumented Immigrant

Lawyers for an unnamed, 16-year-old undocumented immigrant who received a kidney transplant in April 2002 filed suit Wednesday in Ramsey County, Minn., District Court to force the state Human Services Department to continue providing anti-rejection drugs to the boy, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. The boy moved to Minnesota from Mexico in 2002 to live with his brother, then became sick and received a kidney transplant using an organ from his brother. At the time of the operation, the boy was eligible for the state's Medical Assistance program, which covered the cost of both the transplant and the anti-rejection drugs. After legislative budget cuts, however, the boy became ineligible for the program on July 1, and he now qualifies only for emergency medical care, which will cover dialysis services but not the anti-rejection drugs. The suit claims that because some undocumented immigrants are still covered by state-funded health insurance programs, no longer letting the boy receive drugs from Medical Assistance is a violation of the equal-protection clause of the Constitution. Undocumented immigrants who are pregnant, newborn, victims of torture and or have approval from the federal Bureau for Citizenship and Immigration Services to stay in the United States remain eligible for Medical Assistance. The suit also says that the boy will run out of drugs on Friday and that the state should reinstate his medical coverage. Wes Kooistra, deputy commissioner of human services, and the boy's lawyers, Liz Kramer and Byron Starns, did not comment on the case, according to the Star Tribune (Marcotty, Minneapolis Star Tribune, 10/23).