Doctors fear deadly consequences from Florida immigration bill

Some Southwest Florida doctors are worried that a new bill cracking down on illegal immigration could have deadly consequences for their patients.

If signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, the bill would require hospitals that accept Medicaid to ask patients about their citizenship status. Doctors who serve migrant communities fear their patients will stop coming to see them if they have to disclose their immigration status, even if they need urgent care.

Dr. Antonio Gonzalez says he has one job: Care for the people who come to see him at the Community Medical Care Center in Immokalee. He does not care about their immigration status.

“They come here when they are almost dead,” Gonzalez said.

Gonzalez fears his patients will stop seeking medical care if DeSantis signs the immigration bill into law. He expects people to die. Gonzalez says his patients, most of whom are immigrants, already hesitate to go to the doctor.

“This is gonna really be a devastation when it comes to the medical care of immigrants,” Gonzalez said. “Because they are afraid of immigration [authorities] and they don’t want to be deported. And now with this policy, more people won’t go to the offices and to the ER, and I think that this is going to create a bigger problem.”

The sponsor of the bill says the goal is to remove incentives for undocumented immigrants to relocate to Florida and protect the state from the impact of an ongoing border crisis.

The bill also demands businesses with more than 25 staffers to use E-Verify, a federal system that determines if employees can legally work in the U.S., and gives DeSantis $12 million for his migrant relocation initiative.

DeSantis’ initiative caused a stir in 2022 when he flew a group of South American migrants from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard in protest of President Joe Biden’s immigration policy.