Recent executive orders hurt public health
Founded as a safe haven for the oppressed and built by generations of immigrants, the United States has a proud tradition of promoting diversity and compassion, which has made our country more prosperous and vibrant. All Americans benefit when we have policies that seek the highest level of health for all people. Our country’s shared well-being is stronger with our immigrant and refugee communities who fuel innovation and contribute to our economic growth.
Recent executive actions on refugees and immigration contradict this healthier, stronger and more inclusive vision of America. The orders to withhold federal funding from “sanctuary” cities, begin construction of a wall on the Mexican border, pause the refugee program and ban entry from seven Muslim-majority countries are not only contrary to American values of diversity and compassion — but also pose a threat to our overall public health.
As a community leader working to provide health care to some of Houston’s most diverse and underserved communities, I am concerned about the impact these orders will have on the health and wellbeing of America’s families, children and workers. Along with other healthcare providers across the country, I am concerned that these orders could harm America’s health and resilience. Families thrive when they can live without fear of deportations and other discriminatory policies; they deteriorate when marginalized and are targeted.
As a first-generation immigrant, I am grateful for the opportunities this country has given me, including the opportunity to work at HOPE Clinic — a community health center that employs over 130 individuals from over 25 different countries, and provides much needed care to over 15,000 people in the Greater Houston area. America has given me the opportunity to build healthier communities for my children and for all future generations, including new immigrants, like me, who come to this country with a desire to contribute and build a better future.
These executive orders not only affect people from the targeted countries, it also affects you and me. We live in a world that is interconnected and inclusion makes us richer — hope and compassion build bridges not walls. Like me, so many in our health-care workforce are foreign-born and dedicate their lives to improving the health of all communities. Polices that segregate and discriminate will not make America healthier or stronger.
Internationally trained physicians often help address physician shortages in the United States, and meet the critical demands of providing care to underserved populations like those served by our clinic. Policies that block the immigration of these medical professionals will not only set our country back as a world leader in health care, but will also impact the health of Americans most in need.
With roots in the civil rights movement, community health centers like HOPE Clinic, serve anyone who walks through their doors. Serving nearly 25 million patients each year and providing $24 billion in annual health system savings, America’s health centers serve as a leading model of quality health care. It is from this public health lens that I look at the impact of these executive orders.
We know that our healthcare system benefits from the contributions of immigrants from around the world, and a diverse health workforce is necessary for our nations’ health. As a health-care provider promoting a diverse and culturally competent workforce that supports innovations in health care and improved health for all of our patients, I reject discriminatory policies that target individuals based on ethnicity, religion, country of origin, or any other grounds. I stand committed to the Hippocratic oath to provide care to all those in need. I stand to defend the American Dream.