5 hysterectomies referred at Georgia ICE center, DHS tells Congress
WASHINGTON
Immigration and Customs Enforcement referred more detainees for hysterectomies at a Georgia facility than previously disclosed, according to a document acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf submitted to a Senate panel.
“It is my current understanding based on ICE data that, since 2017, a total of five individuals at Irwin County Detention Center were referred to certified, credentialed medical professionals at gynecological and obstetrical health care facilities for hysterectomies in compliance with National
Commission on Correctional Health Care (NCCHC) standards, and three hysterectomies were in fact performed,” Wolf wrote in response to questions about a federal complaint that suggested these procedures were being performed unnecessarily and without informed consent.
The answers, viewed by CQ Roll Call, were in response to a question submitted by Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., following Wolf’s Sept. 23 nomination hearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. Harris had asked Wolf, among other things, what percentage of people at the Irwin center received hysterectomies after being referred for other procedures.
“These recommendations were reviewed by the facility clinical authority and approved,” Wolf said. “Decisions related to health care are made by medical providers and not law enforcement personnel.”
The allegations of unwanted hysterectomies come from a Sept. 10 whistleblower’s complaint to the DHS Office of Inspector General that included accounts from detainees and Dawn Wooten, a nurse who had been employed at that ICE facility in Georgia. Contrasting reports have since come out regarding the scope and nature of the allegations.
Dr. Ada Rivera, the medical director of ICE’s Health Service Corps, released a press statement last month saying that only two individuals had been referred for hysterectomies to the gynecologist ICE enlisted for these procedures since 2018. A representative of ERH
Healthcare, which operates the Irwin County Hospital where the procedures were conducted, told The Washington Post that only two had been performed at the facility since 2017.
Homeland Security’s inspector general office has since launched an investigation into the allegations, and top DHS officials have said their personnel also are reviewing the complaints.
The Irwin County Hospital did not immediately return a call seeking comments. ICE referred to a statement the agency’s acting director,
Tony Pham, released last month.
“As a former prosecutor, individuals found to have violated our policies and procedures should be held accountable,” he said at the time. “If there is any truth to these allegations, it is my commitment to make the corrections necessary to ensure we continue to prioritize the health, welfare and safety of ICE detainees.”
While the investigation is pending, the Georgia medical facility has suspended its relationship with the doctor in question, according to Wolf’s response to Congress.