Skip to main content

The independent source for health policy research, polling, and news.

Subscribe Follow Us Donate
  • Trump 2.0

    Trump 2.0

    • Agency Watch
    • State Watch
    • Rural Health Payout
  • Public Health

    Public Health

    • Vaccines
    • CDC & Disease
    • Environmental Health
  • Audio Reports

    Audio Reports

    • What the Health?
    • Health Care Helpline
    • KFF Health News Minute
    • An Arm and a Leg
    • Health Hub
    • HealthQ
    • Silence in Sikeston
    • Epidemic
    • See All Audio
  • Special Reports

    Special Reports

    • Bill Of The Month
    • The Body Shops
    • Broken Rehab
    • Deadly Denials
    • Priced Out
    • Dead Zone
    • Diagnosis: Debt
    • Overpayment Outrage
    • Opioid Settlement Tracking
    • See All Special Reports
  • More Topics

    More Topics

    • Elections
    • Health Care Costs
    • Insurance
    • Prescription Drugs
    • Health Industry
    • Immigration
    • Reproductive Health
    • Technology
    • Rural Health
    • Race and Health
    • Aging
    • Mental Health
    • Affordable Care Act
    • Medicare
    • Medicaid
    • Children’s Health

  • Gun Violence Trauma
  • Maternal Mortality
  • Hospital Food
  • Medicaid Work Requirements
  • Visa Program Delays

TRENDING TOPICS:

  • Gun Violence Trauma
  • Maternal Mortality
  • Hospital Food
  • Medicaid Work Requirements
  • Visa Program Delays

Morning Briefing

Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations

  • Email

Tuesday, Dec 18 2018

Full Issue

Lawmakers To Tour Border Patrol Station Where 7-Year-Old Girl Died In U.S. Custody, But Won't Be Able To Talk To Agents

Members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus on Tuesday plan to visit the New Mexico patrol station where Jakelin Caal and her father were taken into custody on Dec. 7 to learn more about why the little girl died the next day. But the Department of Homeland Security says the majority of agents involved in the girl’s detention were union members and, as such, their duties do not include speaking to members of Congress.

The Washington Post: After Migrant Girl’s Death, Democrats Seek To Question Border Patrol Agents Who Detained Her

Democrats with the Congressional Hispanic Caucus say they will tour a Border Patrol station in New Mexico on Tuesday to “investigate” the circumstances leading up to the death of a Guatemalan girl who collapsed hours after she and her father were taken into U.S. custody on Dec. 6. The congressional delegation, led by Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Tex.), plans to visit the border crossing at Antelope Wells, where Jakelin Caal, 7, and her father, Nery Caal, entered the United States illegally as part of a group of 163 migrants. The caucus members will then visit the Lordsburg Border Patrol station, 90 miles north, where they will be joined by Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenan. (Miroff, 12/17)

Reuters: U.S. Border Agents Will Not Speak To Lawmakers About Girl's Death

U.S. Border Patrol agents who detained a 7-year-old Guatemalan migrant girl who later died in federal custody will not speak with U.S. lawmakers investigating her death, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said on Monday, citing their union membership. Members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus on Tuesday plan to visit the New Mexico patrol station where Jakelin Caal and her father were taken on Dec. 7 to learn more about why she died the next day. (Hay, 12/17)

In other news on immigration policies —

Los Angeles Times: A 2-Year-Old Is On Life Support In Oakland. Trump's Travel Ban Could Keep His Yemeni Mother From Saying Goodbye

The mother of a 2-year-old boy on life support in an Oakland hospital may not receive a travel ban waiver in time to say goodbye to her son, the Council on American-Islamic Relations said Monday. At a news conference in Sacramento, members of CAIR, community activists and faith leaders stood alongside the boy’s father and demanded that the Trump administration expedite the woman’s application for a waiver. (Parvini, 12/17)

This is part of the Morning Briefing, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.
Newsletter icon

Sign Up For Our Newsletter

Stay informed by signing up for the Morning Briefing and other emails:

Recent Morning Briefings

  • Monday, May 4
  • Friday, May 1
  • Thursday, April 30
  • Wednesday, April 29
  • Tuesday, April 28
  • Monday, April 27
More Morning Briefings
RSS Feeds
  • Podcasts
  • Special Reports
  • Morning Briefing
  • About Us
  • Donate
  • Staff
  • Republish Our Content
  • Contact Us

Follow Us

  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Bluesky
  • TikTok
  • RSS

Sign up for emails

Join our email list for regular updates based on your personal preferences.

Sign up
  • Editorial Policy
  • Privacy Policy

© 2026 KFF