Florida Jury: It is OK to Deport Brain Injured Immigrant

37-year-old Luis Jimenez of Guatemala was seriously injured by a drunk driver in 2000. That left him brain injured; he now has ability of a child and needs round the clock care.

He was uninsured and worked as day laborer, obviously lacked financial means to pay for expensive hospital treatment. He was admitted to Martin Memorial Medical Center, which took care of him for three years but then secretly deported him to Guatemala to a village which lacks medical capacity to care for him.

Jimenez’s cousin in Florida, who was appointed his legal guardian, filed the lawsuit asking the hospital pay compensation for life time care of Jimenez in Guatemala.

I have been following this case for a year now and it raises very serious questions about patient rights, human rights and American immigration system.

A hospital secretly deports a brain injured man because he is not able to pay for the care and a jury sides with them. Is there no such thing as humanity and ethics in American medical field anymore? And this is not the first time this has happened here and I am sure it won’t be the last.

There is also a case of a hospital trying to deport an American baby because the illegal immigrant parents didn’t have insurance to pay for treatment. Local authorities intervened at the last moment to halt the shameless act but the hospital did try its best to dump the patient.

Obvious question here is, if a patient is illegal or lacks insurance does that mean that the person has no rights for fair treatment and access to medical care? Yes Jimenez did receive treatment for three years but if he was a legal immigrant or had insurance the whole case would be different. He would still be receiving treatment in America and not be dumped in a poor Guatemalan village. His immigration and insurance status stripped him of his rights, a very dangerous precedent.

Other question raised by the jury’s decision is that a hospital has the right to deport a patient. It is the Department of Homeland Security that looks after immigration matters, including deportation but now even hospitals have the right to deport. What is next? a university deports student for not paying fees or failing a class? or an employer deports someone for unsatisfactory work. This is a slippery slope and the federal government has to intervene to keep immigration decisions like deportation off from hospitals and state authorities.

This incident is yet another call for immediate health care and immigration reform in the United States. If the Senate and Congress continue to play games with the people’s right to fair and affordable health care and clear immigration policy, there will be more Luis Jimenez in America.