Florida hospitals ask immigrants about their legal status. Texas will try it next
Texas hospitals who are enrolled in state health plans, Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program will start asking patients' immigration status in November
McALLEN, Texas (AP) — For three days, the staff of an Orlando medical clinic encouraged a woman with abdominal pain who called the triage line to go to the hospital. She resisted, scared of a 2023 Florida law that required hospitals to ask whether a patient was in the U.S. with legal permission.
The clinic had worked hard to explain the limits of the law, which was part of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ sweeping package of tighter immigration policies. The clinic posted signs and counseled patients: They could decline to answer the question and still receive care. Individual, identifying information wouldn't be reported to the state.
“We tried to explain this again and again and again, but the fear was real,” Grace Medical Home CEO Stephanie Garris said, adding the woman finally did go to an emergency room for treatment.
Texas will be the next to try a similar law for hospitals enrolled in state health plans, Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program. It takes effect Nov. 1 — just before the end of a presidential election in which immigration is a key topic.
