Refugees dying due to lack of health care in American jails

UNAUTHORISED immigrants are facing death and severe suffering in US internment facilities due to grossly negligent medical care, according to newly released reports by human rights groups.

The reports by Community Initiatives for Visiting Immigrants in Confinement and Human Rights Watch, reveal that the poor attention provided to civil detainees’ health under past administrations will only claim more lives as the administration of President Donald Trump seeks to step up the incarceration of migrants under expanded enforcement and removal plans.

A 104-page report, “Systemic Indifference: Dangerous and Substandard Medical Care in Immigration Detention”, highlights several dangers within the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement internment regime. The report mentions filthy conditions in facilities, unreasonable delays in care, unqualified staff and other “systemic failures” and “serious lapses in health care” that led to detainees suffering.

The report was based largely on reviews by medical experts of official US investigations into deaths of migrants held in custody, as well as investigations into cases that did not involve deaths. The group drew on interviews with detainees’ family members and advocates, as well as medical records.

“The data reveals that people in immigration detention died needlessly under the Obama administration, even with its attempts at reform,” Grace Meng, senior US researcher at Human Rights Watch, said.

The Trump administration is intending to detain even more immigrants.