States might get help with immigrant care

Border counties in Southwest states are overwhelmed with the costs of emergency care for illegal immigrants.

By Markian Hawryluk, AMNews staff. Oct. 21, 2002.

Washington -- Treatment of illegal immigrants cost hospitals in 24 counties bordering Mexico more than $190 million in 2000, according to a recent study. Now congressional lawmakers from those states want the federal government to foot the bill.

The study, conducted by the United States-Mexico Border Counties Coalition, found that about 25% of the $832 million in uncompensated costs incurred by the 77 hospitals in Southwest border counties in 2000 resulted from emergency care provided to undocumented immigrants. Emergency medical services providers incurred another $13 million in uncompensated care costs in 2000.

The true cost of the care provided to these immigrants might be substantially higher. Services delivered by a physician in a hospital's emergency department that were not billed through the hospital were not captured by the study. Other hospitals and clinics in non-border counties were also not included in the analysis. Losses at hospitals in Maricopa County in Arizona, for example, have been estimated as high as $50 million.

The study's authors said the cost is overwhelming the border counties and, in conjunction with declining Medicaid revenues and rising liability costs, is leading to a crisis.

"The problem of uncompensated emergency services has far-reaching implications beyond loss of hospital revenues," the coalition said. "Health care costs and insurance premiums are rising due, in part, to burgeoning levels of uncompensated care."

Some of the counties with high rates of uncompensated care are having trouble funding charity care for legal residents. And in some instances, high levels of unpaid medical bills for undocumented immigrants have forced local hospitals and clinics to reduce staffing, increase patient charges and cut back on services. [...]