EFE

Hospitals in Arizona very soon could find themselves obligated to verify the immigration status of their patients if a bill that worries hospital administrators, doctors and activists passes in the state legislature.

SB1405, which requires hospitals to confirm the legal residence of the patients who seek medical attention, will be presented next Tuesday to the appropriations committee of the Arizona Senate.

“If this bill is approved it will have a profound impact on the Hispanic community and the immigrant community in Arizona,” Border Action Network executive director Jennifer Allen told Efe.

All people need to have access to medical care and if they are afraid of going to the hospital when they need attention, this could have dire consequences such as fostering an epidemic in the state, Allen said.

The bill establishes that hospitals will not be able to deny emergency care to patients but once a person has been attended to and his or her immigration status cannot be verified, that fact must be reported to immigration authorities.

The same thing will occur with patients who receive routine medical examinations.

The bill has been strongly criticized by the media and hospital administrators in Arizona who are against its approval.

“The immigration issue is a federal problem, not something that the hospitals must verify,” Yuma Regional Medical Center executive director Pat Walz said.

The idea that a hospital could be forced to verify the immigration status of any person who comes through its doors is “inappropriate,” Walz said.

“Hospitals have the task of saving lives, without regard for (people’s) immigration status or social class,” Walz said.

Like Allen, Walz fears the social and public effect that initiatives of this kind could have on people who are suffering from chronic diseases and who require continuous medical supervision.

State Sen. Don Shotter, one of the sponsors of the bill, has a different opinion on this issue and argues that his bill seeks to help the state to balance its budget.

“We need to find ways to cut spending and we must find ways to save,” the Republican lawmaker said.

Shotter said that he would like to be compassionate to all people but he feels that “charity begins at home and we must start by taking care of our own.”

The senator insisted that the bill is wholly linked to “finances” and the state’s need to “tighten its belt.”

Article source: http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/news/2011/02/17/make-arizona-hospitals-check-immigration-status/

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