Historic border crossings cause strain on US health care system
WASHINGTON (TND) — Border towns face historic border crossings in the past two years causing an overwhelming strain on our health care system with hospitals not being able to care for their own community.
Laredo, Texas Mayor Dr. Victor Trevino joined The National Desk’s Jan Jeffcoat Wednesday morning to discuss the issue.
“Although we have reduced the amount of migrants being transferred directly, so far as that process has been a managed process but traditionally our hospitals have been underserved,” he said. “No pediatric intensive care unit was started during the pandemic and with this surge of migrants and Laredo being at the transfer area and from other border areas, this is a situation that might be overwhelming to the hospitals and we don't want to see any child or any family situation that would cause not being able to treat those children when they come here.”
Title 42 was lifted last Thursday as the COVID-19 public health emergency came to an end and many border towns braced for a surge of migrants to cross the Southern border. Even before the end of the policy, migrants crossing have traveled miles into hospitals and have dealt with a lot of health issues.
“We have ambulances sometimes wait an hour or two because we don't have enough medical staff, nurses, technicians, and that prevents us from admitting patients right away,” Trevino said. “This is a norm that goes on and off here in Texas and if we get a big surge of migrants, which we're anticipating and we're preparing for that, if we get the transfers, then there'll be an overwhelming situation.”
