Community clinics cutting services to undocumented immigrants

With the economy continuing to languish, community health clinics are beginning to look at cutting services to undocumented immigrants as a means of staying afloat financially.

According to the Pew Hispanic Center, approximately 59 percent of the 11.9 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. are uninsured, accounting for about 15 percent of the roughly 47 million U.S. residents without health insurance.

Historically, the notion has been that it's cheaper to spend $100 per visit on such immigrants at a community health center than absorb $500 when that person ends up in the emergency department. However, the clinics say that with growing numbers of local uninsured residents to care for, and staff cuts underway, something has got to give.

To get more information on this trend:
- read this Kaiser Daily  Health Policy Report item

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