[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 69 (Monday, May 17, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H3022-H3023]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   THE HOUSE SHOULD NOT PASS H.R. 3722, UNDOCUMENTED ALIEN EMERGENCY 
                 MEDICAL ASSISTANCE AMENDMENTS OF 2004

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the order of the House of 
January 20, 2004, the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Solis) is 
recognized during morning hour debates for 5 minutes.
  Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, we heard earlier from the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Rohrabacher) his sentiments regarding H.R. 3722. This 
item is on suspension and will be coming up before us. It is known as 
the Undocumented Alien Emergency Medical Assistance Amendments. That 
title is somewhat misleading because, in fact, what it requires is that 
our local hospitals turn into what I see as law enforcement agencies 
and INS agents, INS Immigration Service agents that would soon be 
asking people who may look or appear as though they are undocumented to 
provide some proof or verification that they are, in fact, full 
citizens of the United States.
  We do not do that in our schools. Why do we have to do that in our 
hospitals, especially when people are already fearful of coming forward 
to, say, a local hospital and having to fill out forms and then being 
told that, well, you do not qualify because you are not a U.S. citizen 
or you are undocumented therefore we are going to call the INS or 
Homeland Security and deport you?
  What kind of fear does that place in a community?
  Well, I can tell you in a community like mine in Los Angeles, 
California, where the make-up of my district is largely Hispanic or 
Latino, that is not to say that they are all undocumented and that is 
not to say that they do not work and pay taxes; in fact, on the average 
I would say that the local immigrants in our communities pay about 
$1,300 in taxes. They do not get that money back in some cases because 
they may not be documented. We know that. That has been happening here 
in the U.S.
  But they pay into our tax base system whether it is to go down and 
buy a gallon of gas at $2.40 or $2.50 a gallon now in Los Angeles, if 
they go down and buy goods at the market or Home Depot, they are paying 
sales tax. All that then goes into our piggy bank, so to speak, for the 
government. That money then is set aside for public health care 
institutions and private health care institutions.
  I would like to tell you that in my district alone I received letters 
from some of our private for-profit hospitals that were adamantly 
opposed to this piece of legislation because they see it again as 
something that is going to provide another layer of bureaucracy. It 
will make them become INS agents. They will have to fingerprint, 
photograph, take digital photos and keep files for 5 years on anyone 
that they believe may be undocumented.
  And I have to tell you that the kind of feeling that I get when I 
hear about

[[Page H3023]]

this type of legislation is one that reminds me of what occurred in 
California back a few years ago. There was an initiative that was 
proposed by the governor then, Pete Wilson, Proposition 187, that would 
bar undocumented families and people, children, from going to school 
and also receiving health care assistance.
  And what that means to many of us in our communities is if a child 
comes into a classroom and, say, may have an illness or disease, they 
are not going to be able to get treated. They are not going to be able 
to go down to the hospital and get immunized and they will not get the 
kind of treatment that right now they are able to get.
  If they do not, what will happen is whatever contagious disease they 
might have is going to somehow not discriminate against the next 
student who sits next to him, whether you are a citizen or not, but, in 
fact, that disease will be spread.
  Why is it that we want to move in a direction that would create more 
fear and anxiety in our communities when I think we have the current 
tools in place right now that were actually passed by this House that 
would provide sufficient services for people who need it?
  And I just want to clarify one thing. There are many undocumented 
people in this country, they are not all Hispanic. Many come from 
Europe, many come from Canada, many come from Asian, Indonesian 
countries as well. And maybe we do not somehow feel that their presence 
is well known, but we know that they are there. They clean our houses, 
they sometimes even clean the hospitals that we go to, they pick our 
lettuce and our fruits that we eat on the table, they also serve as 
janitors in our office buildings. And some of them may even work here 
in Washington, D.C.
  But they are people, and people have to be respected. And those 
people, like anyone else, come to this country believing that they have 
a dream that can be fulfilled here.
  I do not think it is too much to ask for us to say that this law is a 
bad law, that it would, in fact, demoralize an entire community. I do 
not believe that the Bush administration is supportive of this piece of 
legislation because why would he at the beginning of the year say that 
he would want to open up discussions about immigration reform and allow 
for people who are currently here who are not documented be given work 
permits. Why would he open up that discussion and yet the same members 
of his party are saying no, cast those people out. They cost too much 
money, and they are, in fact, a burden on our public and private 
hospitals.
  Well, I am here to tell you that there are 43 million people in the 
U.S. that we can account for that have no health insurance. The 
problems that we have with health care delivery and service does not 
have to be blamed on one group of people. And I am here to tell you 
that we need to oppose this piece of legislation, H.R. 3722, as it 
comes up today for a vote before the House.

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