Government Officials Desperately Scour Country To Find Somewhere To Hold Detained Immigrants
A national spotlight has been on the health and care of immigrants who are in U.S. custody, even as facilities face mounting pressure of an influx of detainees. In one initiative examined earlier this year, Department of Homeland Security officials looked at housing migrant children at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.
The New York Times:
ICE Faces Migrant Detention Crunch As Border Chaos Spills Into Interior Of The Country
Federal immigration authorities faced with overburdened detention centers are scouring the country to find space to house migrants as the crush of asylum seekers that has overwhelmed the Southwest border spreads deep into the nation’s interior. With mounting federal initiatives to hold more and more migrants in custody, officials at Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which oversees long-term detention centers for migrants, are looking for additional space that can be rented inside existing jails, as well as fast-tracking the deportations of current detainees and releasing as many migrants as possible into the country to make room for newcomers. (Dickerson, 4/22)
In other news on immigrants and health care —
Kaiser Health News:
Sparse Treatment Options Complicate Cancer Care For Immigrants In South Texas
Edgar carries a red folder bulging with paperwork, bills and medical records. Before his lung cancer diagnosis in September, he had about $11,000, he said, money he was saving to purchase a used truck and to pay an immigration attorney to pursue legal residency. By February, it was gone, and Edgar was relying on friends and family to cover doctor appointments, food and other basics. His treatment had been complicated by a collapsed lung. “I’m not able to work — I’m breathing with just one lung,” said the 50-year-old painter, who asked to be identified by only his first name because he’s an undocumented immigrant from Mexico. (Huff, 4/23)
WBUR:
At The U.S.-Mexico Border, Volunteer Medics Step In To Care For Migrants
Some migrants arrive in need of medical care. Others become sick while they're in government custody. Volunteer medics are stepping in to provide care once those families are released. (Falk, 4/23)
