Immigration Policy and Access to Health Services

Excerpt

Section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), added in 1996, authorizes the US Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) to enter into agreements with state and local law enforcement agencies to enforce federal immigration law during their regular, daily law-enforcement activity (www.​ice.​gov/​287g). The original intent was to “target and remove undocumented immigrants convicted of violent crimes, human smuggling, gang/organized crime activity, sexual-related offenses, narcotics smuggling and money laundering.” Nationally, over 72 jurisdictions have implemented section 287(g) agreements in 23 states. More than 1,240 active 287(g) officers have been trained and certified, and since 2006, federal funding to facilitate 287(g) agreements has increased dramatically every year, growing from $5 million allocated in 2006 to more than $68 million in 2010 [1]. …