WACO, Texas (KXXV) — Texas law requiring hospitals to collect patient's immigration status is raising new concerns about whether some people feel safe seeking medical care.
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As immigration enforcement efforts increase nationwide, some patients may be delaying treatment or avoiding hospitals altogether, according to legal and public health advocates.
The policy, implemented in 2024, requires hospitals to ask patients about their citizenship status. Patients may decline to answer, but facilities must track responses and report the data to Texas Health and Human Services.
Pallavi Ahluwalia, a managing attorney with a Dallas and Houston-based law firm, said fear surrounding immigration enforcement is becoming more visible.
“I think people are feeling the presence of ICE a bit more. They are worried more because there are stories that are coming out, as to how if somebody was going for a treatment they got picked up, they got detained, and then eventually deported.”
Ahluwalia said that fear can have serious health consequences, pointing to cases where individuals avoid care even after injuries.
“We know of this lady, who fell down and refused to – she knocked herself down on the pavement and got really badly hurt – and refused to go to a hospital. Even three months later she is still experiencing dizziness.”
She added that uncertainty about what could happen during a hospital visit may be influencing decisions.
“If I’m getting spotted out or picked up and I don’t know whether I am going to return from a hospital visit, it would concern me.”
State data reflects a shift in hospital usage. According to reporting by The Texas Tribune using data from Texas Health and Human Services, hospital visits from undocumented patients dropped by more than 30% in less than a year.
Despite those concerns, federal law requires hospitals to provide emergency care regardless of immigration status.
“Health is a requirement. It’s a humanitarian requirement that if people are in urgent need they should go and be able to be treated without any fear,” Ahluwalia said.
Policies requiring hospitals to ask about immigration status remain uncommon nationwide. Currently, only Texas and Florida have implemented such requirements.
