[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 11 (Friday, January 26, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Page S498]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. McCAIN:
  S. 1531. A bill to reimburse States and their political subdivisions 
for emergency medical assistance provided to illegal aliens under their 
custody as a result of Federal action; to the Committee on the 
Judiciary.


           immigration and naturalization service legislation

 Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, this legislation would require the 
Immigration and Naturalization Service to reimburse States and 
localities for the cost of emergency ambulance services provided to 
illegal aliens injured while crossing the border. Currently, border 
communities pay the high cost associated with providing emergency 
ambulance services to illegal aliens. Although Federal authorities 
consistently have placed illegal aliens injured crossing the border in 
State and local custody in order to obtain medical services, the 
Federal authorities have failed to reimburse local Governors for the 
emergency ambulance services provided. As a result, Federal authorities 
have left border States and localities to pick up the tab for a Federal 
responsibility. This cannot continue.
  In my home State of Arizona, the border city of Nogales has been 
particularly impacted by the failure of Federal authorities to 
reimburse the city for the costs of transporting aliens injured while 
crossing the border. Between April 22 and July 31, 1995, 44 calls were 
made by the Border Patrol to the city requesting ambulance service for 
illegal aliens injured while crossing the border. Because these 
patients rarely pay their own ambulance transport bill, the financial 
burden on the city has become very heavy. The city has paid almost 
$200,000 in ambulance costs in the past 6 years. This cost is 
significant to Nogales, a border community which has only 20,000 
inhabitants, a low tax base, and recently reported a $100,000 deficit. 
The devaluation of the peso has left many Southwestern border 
communities in a similarly depressed financial position. Illegal 
immigration is a Federal matter and our Nation's border communities 
cannot afford and should not be forced to pay for emergency ambulance 
services provided at the request of Federal authorities. Again, that is 
a Federal responsibility.
  I recognize that a separate and much broader debate is being waged 
across the Nation concerning a State's obligation to provide health 
care and other social services to illegal aliens residing within its 
borders. That issue is much larger and remains to be resolved. Today, 
however, I believe we can all agree that Federal authorities who call 
upon local emergency ambulance services for injured illegal aliens 
should be required to pay for those ambulance services. Our border 
States and communities should not be saddled with this additional 
financial burden.
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