Members of the Arizona congressional delegation recently called on the federal government to provide financial assistance to hospitals in border areas for their provision of emergency medical care to undocumented immigrants. Senators John McCain and Jon Kyl, along with Representatives Jim Kolbe and Raul Grijalva had earlier visited the border cities of Nogales and Douglas, and Tucson, which is about 50 miles north of the border. Statistics show that Arizona spends $100 million on emergency treatment of undocumented immigrants annually.
Immigration is solely within federal control, but the states are required by federal law to provide emergency care to all undocumented immigrants. In 1997 Congress passed a law requiring the federal government to reimburse states for costs associated with medical care for undocumented immigrants, but never provided any funding for the measure. Sen. Kyl said he would introduce a bill to appropriate this funding, and the other three said they would support it. They hope that President Bush, as the former governor of a border state, would understand the role of the federal government in addressing the problem.
The delegation also called on the federal government to improve the security of the border, developing methods to cut down on undocumented immigration while making it easier for lawful visitors to enter.
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