The American College of Physicians, the nation's largest physician specialty society, Tuesday called on U.S. physicians to oppose the mass deportation of 12 million undocumented residents due to the potential adverse health impact.
ACP has officially opposed mass deportation of undocumented residents since 2011, according to their statement, though it recognizes the U.S. needs control over who is admitted into the country.
However, in light of recent debate over immigration policies, the society reaffirmed its view against deportation and its call for a national immigration policy on healthcare that ensures all residents have access to care.
"Largely missing from the debate over immigration policies has been consideration of the potentially grave impact that large-scale deportation would have on the health of those directly affected, their families, their communities, and on overall U.S. public health," ACP President Wayne Riley, MD, said in the statement. "Large-scale deportation of undocumented residents would have severe and unacceptable adverse health consequences for many millions of vulnerable people. Numerous studies show that deportation itself, as well as the fear of being deported, causes emotional distress, depression, trauma associated with imposed family separations, and distrust of anyone assumed to be associated with federal, state and local government, including physicians and other healthcare professionals providing care in publicly-funded hospitals and clinics.”
"Such distrust can result in patients delaying and/or not obtaining needed care, including for highly infectious diseases like SARS and tuberculosis," Dr. Riley added, "especially if physicians in publicly-funded healthcare facilities would be required to report to authorities on the immigration status of those seeking care from them, as has already been proposed by some states. We would consider such reporting requirements to be an unacceptable, impermissible intrusion on the patient-physician relationship."
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