Posted on 07/18/2014 9:56:11 AM PDT by Politico2isBack
July 18, 2014
Sylvia Mathews Burwell, Secretary U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 200 Independence Avenue, S.W. Washington, DC 20201
Craig Fugate, Administrator Federal Emergency Management Agency U.S. Department of Homeland Security 500 C Street SW Washington, DC 20472
Secretary Burwell and Administrator Fugate:
The Florida Department of Health has received unconfirmed reports that the federal government is bringing unaccompanied minors from the border to Florida today. On July 17, we received unconfirmed information that dozens of children were being brought by plane into Miami on Friday. This same day, ABC news reported that "the federal government is so overwhelmed by the current tide of migrants crossing the border it cannot provide basic medical screening to all of these children before transporting them, often by air, to longer-term holding facilities across the country.” (Feds Struggling to Cope with Medical 'Breakdown' at the Border, ABC News, July 17, 2014.)
Specifically, ABC News reported that your Health and Human Services Department's Director of Refugee Health said you, "identified a breakdown of the medical screening processes.” This breakdown was described in the news report as "a systemic failure of the handoff of these children between Customs Border Protection (CBP) and Health and Human Services (HHS).”
If these reports are accurate, this "systemic failure” in the federal system is extremely worrisome. In order to fulfill my duties as Florida's State Surgeon General, I am asking you to immediately provide the below information. This information is urgently needed to guard the health and safety of Florida communities across our state and is vital to the well-being of those children from the border who may have come through the flawed federal system.
• Will you notify the Florida Department of Health immediately of any current or future unaccompanied minors coming to, or placed in, Florida, including their current location?
• Are you conducting health screenings both at the border and again at the time the children are placed in shelters?
• What medical services, if any, were provided to any children placed in Florida?
• Do you have any records of infectious diseases associated with the children currently in federal care in Florida?
• Have any of the children been hospitalized in Florida with fevers accompanying their illnesses? If so, where are they being treated?
Because of the urgency of this request, this letter is being immediately emailed and faxed to you. I expect a prompt response to my request for information on existing unaccompanied minors in Florida and would like to stress the importance of future timely communications.
Sincerely,
John H. Armstrong, MD, FACS State Surgeon General and Secretary Florida Department of Health
Too bad passengers can’t demand answers by the airlines to similar questions, such as have you transported illegal aliens, have their been any reports of passengers with communicable diseases on your planes, which planes, or have you fumigated your planes,and how recently, specific flight information please, etc.
6. hard drive crashed all info lost
Honestly? We should forward Dr. Armstrong’s letter to Southwest, and ask them what THEY are doing to ensure the rest of their passengers health? Could anyone getting sick sue them?
He is right.
Bringing diseased children into the state is certainly worse than bringing diseased plants.
Like diseased plants, the diseased alien latrinos should be turned away
WEAK.
Excellent point. Who knows how many TB germs are floating around in the aircraft’s cabin, not to mention head lice and bedbugs.
Oops - I forgot scabies.
He should of said something about fundraisers to get Onama’s attention..
That’s what I’ve been wondering. What is their (airlines) liability...for the paying, non-illegal passengers’ health?
When I first read that these illegals were being FLOWN across the country, I naively imagined chartered flights...with only the illegals as passengers...or, at the very least, just the illegals being flown on commercial flights...no general public. I hoped they were at least disinfecting the planes, afterwards.
But, that is not the case. They’re being boarded and flown along with the general public, in spite of the health risks (confirmed cases of H1N1, scabies, pneumonia, etc.).
thpppttthzzzz - geeze. In consideration of the FAILED SYSTEM and hence, failure to examine and/or screen the “undocumented children”, why in the HELL didn’t the Florida Surgeon General NOTIFY the federales that he WILL NOT ALLOW said undocumented children to be placed within the state of Florida unless and until they ARE screened for communicable disease?????? Wimp.
Speaking of which, why are they still here????? WHY HAVEN’T THEY BEEN GIVEN A ONE-WAY TICKET BACK TO WHERE THEY CAME FROM?
bULL sHIT. Letter not worded STRONG ENOUGH. If the situation is truly worrisome, he needs to get mean and get some muscle behind him.
Totally agree.
They are flying charter flights not commercial.
How can we find out what airlines are flying the kids and what airlines aren’t?
No. Some of them are flying commercial. They get priority boarding too. Before first class. LOL
“Military in uniform, move to coach, illegals, move to 1st class.”
You can’t take a horse into Florida, without state employee review of his vet papers at the border.
This appears to be the first letter and it hit all the high points and was blunt about the urgency of the situation.
Far as I know he doesn’t have a swat team to deliver it, if he does I expect the 2nd will be more pointed.
At least he guy is trying and not bending over for this crap. If these kids do carry infectious diseases that kill some of the older folks may wake up a bunch of seniors and since they have less time to live they may take to their walkers and attack. I would like to see that.
He is called the surgeon general but that does not mean that he commands and army. The best he can hope to do is quarantine those children or gang members with infectious diseases if they will give up their locations. There has to be a paper trail to them available somewhere. What we need is another Eric Snowden to dig this info out and release it.
You do understand that charter is nothing but commercial where you buy up all the seats, right? We chartered a plane once that had just come in from a chartered flight for some pro football team. They don’t throw the plane away after one use. It goes back into circulation so the next planeload of passengers get to sit in seats with who knows what ick.
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