Saturday, March 28, 2009

Obama's New Border Initiatives

The New York Times editorially praised the "sensible steps" taken by the Obama administration last week to assist Mexico with its drug wars on the border. The paper was pleased that the administration clearly rejected the nativist tarring economic migrants with the same brush as criminal violators of the border. But it warned that comprehensive immigration reform must be part of the ultimate solution to our troubled borders.

IMMIGRANTS AND PUBLIC HEALTH

The New York Times series, "remade in America", takes up the pressures of immigration growth on public health. It studied the Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis which has been impacted with ther growth of Hispanic migrants and Asian and African refugees. They come often will ailments not usually seen in the U.S. and quickly pick bad American eating habits that leads to diseases new to them -- obesity, diabetes and heart disease. The most obvious issue is the need for translators, but some are not so obvious. Immigrants often don't follow the doctor's advise, Muslim women refuse to be treated by male doctors, the undocumented get no government help, and costs rise so quickly nativists scream the immigrants are bankrupting the health system.

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