For Immigrants Trying To Comply With New Trump Policies, Complex Health System, Confusing Directives Muddy Waters
The Trump administration gave scant detail about how new requirements that immigrants prove they can pay for insurance would be implemented beyond a bullet-point list of the types of plans that would be accepted. This has left many facing a system that is complicated and confusing at the best of times. Other immigration news focuses on conditions at detention facilities and a new acting secretary for DHS.
Reuters:
Trump Rule On Health Insurance Leaves Immigrants, Companies Scrambling For Answers
Nearly a decade after receiving U.S. citizenship, Guatemalan-born Mayra Lopez thought she had cleared all the hurdles for her parents to join her in the United States. Then on Oct. 4 U.S. President Donald Trump changed the rules she and others had been complying with: Trump signed a proclamation requiring all prospective immigrants to prove they will have U.S. health insurance within 30 days of their arrival or enough money to pay for "reasonably foreseeable medical costs." (10/31)
CNN:
ICE Detention: What Doctors Who Became Detainees Say They Saw
The two men haven't met, but their stories are strikingly similar. They grew up in Cuba, studied to become doctors and swore an oath to do no harm. Then, years later, they ended up somewhere they never expected: a privately-run US immigrant detention center in rural Louisiana. Held behind bars as they pleaded for asylum, these men say they watched people around them receiving poor medical care, but -- despite their years of training -- felt powerless to help. (Shoichet, 11/1)
Texas Tribune:
ICE Transfers Detainees Out Of West Texas Facility Due To Water Shortage
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has transferred detainees out of a West Texas detention center after a water shortage forced the facility to use portable toilets and bottled water. The shortage has forced the West Texas Detention Facility, operated by Louisiana-based LaSalle Corrections, to turn off its water every night and outsource its laundry services since the shortage began Oct. 21. (Aguilar, 10/31)
Politico:
White House Plans To Name Chad Wolf Acting DHS Secretary
The White House plans to name Homeland Security official Chad Wolf acting secretary, according to three people familiar with the situation. Wolf will replace acting DHS Secretary Kevin McAleenan, whose last day in the job was supposed to be Thursday. McAleenan will now stay until Nov. 7, according to one of the people with knowledge of the matter. (Lippman, Kullgren and Kumar, 10/31)
