Thread: KS:Immigrant case puts hospital in a bind

Immigrant case puts hospital in a bind

A woman seriously injured in a fall several months ago is illegally in the U.S., which means she is not eligible for Medicaid or Medicare.
BY CHRISTINA M. WOODS
The Wichita Eagle

A Wichita hospital is in a quandary -- trying to find long-term care for a charity case involving a patient who is an illegal immigrant.One local health provider says problems such as this could become more common because of the growing number of illegal immigrants in Kansas.
Select Specialty Hospital typically serves chronically ill and seriously injured people who have a wide range of complex medical conditions. It is located within, but not affiliated with, Via Christi Regional Medical Center-St. Francis campus. The hospital usually admits about 40 people a month. Patients typically stay about 25 days, said Billy Blasingame, the hospital's chief executive. The patient, a middle-aged woman, has been at the hospital almost four months.

Staff members have been unsuccessful trying to find a different place for her, but the hospital does not offer long-term care.Family members are unable to care for her. No local health care provider has been willing to accept her. The staff has brought in the Kansas City, Mo.-based Mexican Consulate for assistance. "A patient like this will not be able to benefit from any normal county and state resources like most people would," Blasingame said.
Her immigration status prevents her from applying for Medicaid or Medicare. Blasingame could not release specifics of the woman's condition or details about the cost of treating her, citing privacy concerns. For that reason, The Eagle is not naming the woman. According to Daniel Aguado Ornelas, with the Mexican Consulate's Protection Department in Kansas City, Mo., the woman fell in the restroom of a Hutchinson retail store in late 2007. She was airlifted to a Wichita hospital. She has since suffered brain damage, he said. Ornelas said arrangements have been made for her to receive care at Hospital Civil Libertad in Ciudad Juarez, in the Mexican state of Chihuahua. He said his office arranges long-term medical care in Mexico for Mexican nationals living in the United States, regardless of their immigration or insurance status. "Even if they have papers, some people decide to receive medical attention in Mexico" because it's cheaper, Ornelas said. "We do this all the time." He said his department handles about one case a month. In this instance, Ornelas said the Juarez hospital is requiring a family member to assist in the woman's care. "There is a good chance for them to get her into the hospital," Ornelas said. "The problem is that she has no family there. "We have done everything we could."

For now, the woman remains at Select hospital. Patty Larraga, with the Institute of Minority Health, Education and Research in Wichita, said the woman was fortunate that the hospital didn't seem interested in kicking her out. Larraga said area health providers may see an increase in these kinds of scenarios as illegal immigrants get older and need long-term health care.

The Pew Hispanic Center estimates that about 50,000 illegal immigrants live in Kansas, more than three times as many as in 1990. "I think it's going to be overwhelming soon," Larraga said, as similar cases could strain the resources of Kansas hospitals and leave patients in limbo. "We've got to have some kind of system, but I don't know what the answer is."


http://www.kansas.com/news/local/story/435428.html

Duplicate Post original at

http://www.alipac.us/ftopic-119483-0.html

Looked before I posted but couldn't find the duplicate. -- sorry

I believe the most humane thing to do is to put her on a one way cattle car ride to the border. Her family can pick her up there, and take her across the border.