http://www.desertdispatch.com/2005/112791369094899.html

Wednesday, September 28, 2005

Illegal immigration continues to climb
Supervisors work to recoup costs of emergency room care
FROM STAFF REPORTS

SAN BERNARDINO -- The Board of Supervisors took another step on Tuesday to ensure San Bernardino County is reimbursed for the millions of dollars it must spend on illegal immigrants.

The board ratified an application to the federal government for reimbursement of costs incurred by Arrowhead Regional Medical Center Director. Arrowhead Regional Medical Center spends about $1 million annually to provide emergency room care to illegal immigrants.

Federal law precludes hospitals from refusing to treat anyone who comes to an emergency room seeking help. Failure to provide care can result in federal fines. Because of this requirement, illegal immigrants often use the ER as their first and only form of health care.

"Until now, the county has borne this burden alone," Second District Supervisor Paul Biane said. "By tapping this federal reimbursement program, the county can hopefully recoup millions in uncompensated health care costs over the next four years."

Hospital staff will not ask patients directly about their citizenship status. Instead, staff will ask patients for their Social Security numbers, passports and insurance information. Staff will consider the answers given when deciding whether to classify a patient as an illegal immigrant.

"We do not want to deter anyone from seeking necessary medical treatment," Biane said in a press release. "We simply want to make sure we are appropriately reimbursed by the federal government for treating uninsured, illegal immigrants."

University Medical Center in Tucson, Arizona, has been collecting patients' immigration information for two decades, and illegal immigrants continue to seek treatment at the hospital, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges. In 2003, the hospital spent $6 million to treat illegal immigrants. In 2004, that uncompensated figure rose to $12 million.

In addition to supporting the application for reimbursement, Biane also asked Behavioral Health, Public Health and Arrowhead officials to meet and devise a way to track uncompensated costs for all health care rendered to illegal immigrants.

"I plan on making sure San Bernardino County gets every penny it deserves for services rendered to people in this country illegally," Biane said. "If the federal government cannot keep illegal immigrants out, it certainly must assist local governments like San Bernardino County that are financially impacted."

Last week, the Board of Supervisors appropriated funding for a program that will help the county secure more federal reimbursement for detaining undocumented immigrants arrested for crimes. Currently, many illegal immigrants are released from jail before federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers can properly document them.

Through the new program, ICE officers will train Sheriff's Department custody specialists how to identify and properly document illegal immigrants. By doing this, the county can request the appropriate amount of reimbursement from the federal government. The Sheriff's Department estimates it costs the County about $11 million a year to detain illegal immigrants.