[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 70 (Tuesday, May 18, 2004)]
[House]
[Page H3097]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    H.R. 3722, THE UNDOCUMENTED ALIEN EMERGENCY MEDICAL ASSISTANCE 
                           AMENDMENTS OF 2004

  (Mr. DREIER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, Congress has consistently approved the 
eligibility of undocumented immigrants to receive emergency services, 
and I firmly believe that providing emergency health care is not 
inconsistent with curbing illegal immigration, which continues to be a 
high priority for me and others here.
  H.R. 3722, which we discussed yesterday and will be voting on today, 
would require hospitals to gather information on patients in emergency 
care situations, including a biometric indicator to be retained in 
hospital records for a minimum of 5 years. This data would be 
transmitted to the Department of Homeland Security to initiate the 
removal proceedings for undocumented immigrants.
  Hospitals oppose H.R. 3722 because it will, in fact, compromise 
public safety. The American Hospital Association states: ``H.R. 3722 
could pose a significant public health threat for entire communities 
because the fear of deportation would inevitably preclude undocumented 
immigrants from seeking care for communicable diseases until these 
individuals are extremely ill.''
  Mr. Speaker, we need to do everything we can to ensure that we do not 
pass H.R. 3722.

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