This report originally appeared in the December 2009 issue of DOTmed Business News, now online.
A federal suit charges that immigrants in detention are receiving substandard medical care that has led to medical emergencies, and in the case of one of the plaintiffs, death. The suit is against the Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Division of Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security, and various individuals.
Plaintiff Juan Carlos Baires was an HIV-positive detainee in ICE, and was allegedly refused treatment including medications needed to fight opportunistic infections. The complaint says as a result, he developed a staph infection in his foot that led to several weeks of intense pain and eventually to his death. Another HIV-positive plaintiff, Teofilo Miranda claims to have been refused treatment during his incarceration with ICE. After release from over 75 days detention, he was forced to go to an area hospital for his deteriorating condition.
The complaint charges the defendants with violating the Eight Amendment for deliberate indifference to serious medical needs, Equal Protection violations and Americans with Disabilities Act violations among other actions. The complaint states that these incidences are part of a pattern of medical neglect with ICE facilities in the entire detention system, and that 90 individuals have died within the facilities since 2003 and hundreds of others suffered from lack of care, with patients forced to undergo various bureaucratic challenges to obtain any treatment. The facilities are supposed to take precautionary measures to prevent health care emergencies including early screening and physical examinations. If individuals have acute or chronic medical needs, they must be referred to a primary care provider for treatment.
