Calif. Hospitals Spend $1.25 Bil On Illegal Immigrants

Judicial Watch ^ | July 5, 2011

[jazusamo]

While the Obama Administration halts deportations to work on its secret amnesty plan, hospitals across the U.S. are getting stuck with the exorbitant tab of medically treating illegal immigrants and some are finally demanding compensation from the federal government.

The group that represents most of the nation’s hospitals and medical providers recently urged President Obama to work with Congress to reimburse them for the monstrous cost of treating illegal immigrants. Federal law requires facilities to “treat and stabilize individuals” regardless of their immigration status, but federal support for the services remains “virtually nonexistent,” according to a letter submitted by the American Hospital Association to the president.

This week officials in California, the state with the largest concentration of illegal immigrants, joined the call for federal compensation after revealing that hospitals there spend about $1.25 billion annually to care for illegal aliens. The figure skyrocketed from $1.05 billion in 2007, according to California Hospital Association figures quoted in a local news report.

The problem will only get worst, according to officials, who say the $1.25 billion for 2010 could actually be higher. They complain that federal law forces them to treat patients in emergency rooms regardless of immigration status yet they get stuck with the financial burden. This has forced many hospitals to curtail services or close beds and could ultimately compromise healthcare.

Nationwide, U.S. taxpayers spend tens of billions of dollars annually to provide free medical care for illegal immigrants with states that border Mexico taking the biggest hit. Adding to the problem is the fact that Mexico, the country that provides the largest amount of illegal immigrants in the U.S., has long promoted America’s generous public health centers. It even operates a Spanish-language program (Ventanillas de Salud, Health Windows) in about a dozen U.S. cities that refers its nationals—living in the country illegally—to publicly funded health centers where they can get free medical care without being turned over to immigration authorities.

[ding_dong_daddy_from_dumas]

I can just imagine him rolling the “rr” to attempt an “authentic” pronunciation of the word “burro.”

[stephenjohnbanker]

Maybe his teleprompter will pronounce it for him.

[cradle of freedom]

I’ve been thinking about a demographic movement of our own to counter the illegal alien invasion. How about encouraging retired conservatives from liberal northern areas to move into California and Texas which are inundated with millions of illegals. Retirees can have two homes, one up north and one in an area heavily affected by illegal aliens. They can list their southern homes as their legal addresses so that they can vote where their voice can do the most good. If they have been living in a liberal voting area in the north, their votes have been going to waste anyway but it can do some good to bulwark the states under attack such as California and Texas.

There are lots of people who live in the southern states during the winter and then return up north during the summer months. If you are a conservative who lives in a liberal area, you might as well switch your voting address to your southern home. If you are a snowbird looking for a winter home, why not consider going to Texas or California where your vote could make a difference?