Thread: CT: Taxpayers footing the bills for illegal immigrants

Taxpayers footing the bills for illegal immigrants

by News Channel 8's Alan Cohn
Posted Nov. 13, 2007
10:00 PM

Danbury (WTNH) _ A Team 8 investigation has uncovered information about the cost of caring for illegal immigrants at Danbury Hospital.

Wilson Hernandez has been visiting his friend at the Intensive Care Unit at Danbury Hospital for three weeks now. The friend, who does not want to be identified, is uninsured and is an illegal alien from Ecuador.

"He got hit by a car," said Hernandez. "He is in a coma. Doctors are telling us he has no chance of recovering."

And with every passing day, the already staggering bill mounts and Danbury Hospital will be paid by your tax dollars.

"Regardless what my personal opinion might be on the issue, my professional responsibility is to be sure we are meeting the needs of the community," said the CEO of Danbury Hospital, Frank Kelly. "When they come to the emergency room, we are obligated under law to treat those patients."

But how much does it really cost Danbury Hospital to care for illegal aliens? Opponents of illegal immigration have not been able to cite actual figures until now. Team 8 has obtained a financial statement from Danbury Hospital and it shows that in the first two quarters of last year, they treated a total of 321 aliens at a cost of almost $4-million.

Only three of those patients were covered by insurance and only one paid their $7,722 bill in full. State aid, meaning taxpayers, paid over 71-percent of the tab, or about $2.5 million.

Elise Marciano is the president of the Anti-Illegal Immigration Group in Danbury. "That is so incredible that our taxpayers money that this hospital is spending on people who shouldn't even be here," she said.

Frank Kelly says he understands how illegal immigration opponents feel about the staggering numbers. "Thank goodness I don't have to deal with that issue. We're in the health care business and our goal is to focus on health care," he said.

The price tag is fodder for illegal immigration opponents who take issue with the costs to taxpayers when it comes to education, city services and health care.

"It all accounts to the taxpayers and the people who work in this state that this is what our money is being paid for and we have people who need it in the state far more than people who don't belong here," Marciano said.

Meanwhile, Hernandez is grateful that Danbury Hospital is not asking questions, just providing care to his friend.

http://www.wtnh.com/Global/story.asp?S= ... v=menu29_2

The friend, who does not want to be identified, is uninsured and is an illegal alien from Ecuador.
He got hit by a car," said Hernandez. "He is in a coma. Doctors are telling us he has no chance of recovering."










Huh, what? The friend does not want to be identified? How did he say that when he's in irreversible coma?

Danbury is not too far from New York City, so that's where they're probably coming in from.

Originally Posted by Populist

Danbury is not too far from New York City, so that's where they're probably coming in from.

Sadly I must say I think you're right and our Mayor has given an open invitation to other Illegals who want to come!

I love Brooklyn...the way I remember it...but not so much what it has become.

Report: Aliens cost hospital $4M
WTNH-TV says 321 illegal immigrants received treatment in Danbury last year
By Marietta Homayonpour STAFF WRITER
Article Launched: 11/15/2007 09:12:25 AM EST



DANBURY -- During the first two quarters of last year, Danbury Hospital treated 321 illegal immigrants at a cost of almost $4 million, according to a report from WTNH-TV.

However, hospital officials said they do not track whether a patient receiving care is a U.S. citizen.

"When someone presents themselves at the E.D. (emergency department)," said hospital spokesman Andrea Rynn, "and requires (emergency) care, their residency or legal status is not top of mind. We're in the business of health care and we're obligated to care for those in need."

During its Tuesday broadcast, WTNH showed a one-page document allegedly from Danbury Hospital called "Self Pay Outcomes, FY 06, Quarter 1 & 2."

The document has a specific line item for "undocumented non-citizens," according to WTNH reporter Alan Cohn.

"It does break it down," Cohn said in an interview Wednesday.

Cohn said the figures show that more than $3.9 million was spent for the undocumented in the first two quarters of last year and more than $6 million for U.S. citizens.

But that's a different picture from the one that emerged earlier this year in a lengthy series on immigration published by The News-Times. Another spokesman for the hospital at that time -- Linda Wiseman -- said "while we recognize that we do serve the undocumented population, we do not distinguish patients in that way."

Under a 1986 federal law, hospitals must provide a medical examination and treatment to stabilize the condition of any patient who requests care in its emergency room, regardless of the person's ability or immigration status.

According to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, hospitals are prohibited from asking a person's immigration status.

Danbury Hospital officials told The News-Times in January that it provided nearly $4 million in "charity care" from Oct. 1, 2005, to Sept. 30, 2006. Charity care is a term that refers to services provided to patients who are unable to pay and for which the hospital does not bill.

In an interview Wednesday, Danbury Hospital spokesman Rynn reiterated that the figure covers anyone who cannot pay -- and that the hospital does not track patients' citizenship status.

Danbury has been a hotbed for the debate over illegal immigration for several years.

The report would mark the first time a definitive number has been cited showing the impact of undocumented immigration in Danbury.

Mayor Mark Boughton formed a group with other mayors and town leaders across the country to lobby Congress for immigration reform.

Knowing precisely how many illegal immigrants Danbury Hospital serves would help, Boughton said.

"Certainly, having data is important when you're making an argument to federal lawmakers about the impact of not having a coherent policy," Boughton said.

State aid paid 71 percent of the $4 million at Danbury Hospital, according to WTNH.

That angered Elise Marciano, of U.S. Citizens for Immigration Law Enforcement, a group that meets in Danbury.

"It means that you and I and everyone who lives in the state of Connecticut are paying 70 percent of their bill," Marciano said.

http://www.newstimes.com/ci_7469770