The St. John’s Community Health clinic in South Los Angeles is usually a bustling hub of activity, with patients coming and going. However, recently, community health worker Ana Ruth Varela has noticed a change. Many patients are now hesitant to leave their homes due to the looming fear of immigration raids.
In light of Donald Trump’s presidency, concerns about mass deportations by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement have intensified in immigrant communities across the country. The fear was exacerbated when a long-standing policy that prohibited federal immigration agents from making arrests at sensitive locations, including hospitals, was rolled back shortly after Trump’s inauguration in January.
Acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary, Benjamine Huffman, revoked the directive on Jan. 21, citing the need to assist agents in locating immigrants who have committed crimes. This sudden change caught many by surprise, including Darryn Harris, the chief government affairs and community relations officer for St. John’s, who believed they had more time to prepare.
In response to the shifting landscape, Harris is now in a race against time to educate over 1,000 St. John’s employees on how to read warrants and teach patients about their constitutional rights. California Attorney General Rob Bonta has advised clinics to inform patients of their right to remain silent and provide them with legal aid resources. Additionally, health care providers are urged to refrain from including patients’ immigration status in records and bills.
Matt Lopas, a director at the National Immigration Law Center, emphasized the importance of having trained personnel at health care centers to verify the validity of warrants presented by immigration officers. In the San Francisco Bay Area, Zenaida Aguilera has taken on the responsibility of reading warrants for La Clínica de La Raza and training hundreds of health care workers.
Aguilera’s concerns are palpable as she anticipates heightened immigration enforcement in California, which has the highest number of residents without legal status in the country. With the looming threat of ICE officials entering clinics, she is focused on preparing her staff to handle such situations while ensuring patients’ rights are protected.
As the healthcare landscape continues to evolve amidst changing immigration policies, health clinics like St. John’s and La Clínica de La Raza are at the forefront of educating staff and patients on their constitutional rights and providing resources to navigate uncertain times.
Security guard in front of a St. John’s Community Health clinic in South Los Angeles (Jackie Fortiér/KFF Health News)
This article is a collaboration between NPR and KFF Health News.
