Speech #1040190282

I support the ChabotConyers amendment. which would strike the employment verification system from the bill. Finally. H.R. 2202 would restrict immigrants access to all Federal meanstested programs. This means that programs like child care. immunizations. the Head Start Program. battered spouse shelters. and Maternal and Child Health Care Programs will be out of reach for needy women and children. Compromising the health and education of women and children hurts all Americans. Children must not be made to suffer from the actions of their parents. Furthermore. it Is not in our national Interest to have a population of malnourished. nonimmunized. and uneducated children. H.R. 2202 also proposes to reimburse hospitals that provide emergency services to undocumented Immigrants only if the hospital turns in the names of the undocumented people it serves. If this proposal becomes law people will fear seeking emergency care. By discouraging sick and critically il people from seeking help. this provision jeopardizes not only the health of those who are ill. but also risks the wellbeing of their families and their communities. In addition. the measure will force doctors. nurses. and hospital administrators to spend valuable time and resources being law enforcers and learning to interpret immigration documents and understand the minutia of immigration law. In short. there are no easy solutions for the deepseated problems facing our Nation. Scapegoating. however. is not the answer. The Issue has never been should we deal with immigration but how. Although H.R. 2202 comes clothed In good Intentions. I am afraid the legislation does not capture fully the Commissions work and effectively bring about a long. lasting solution. Immigrants are not the cause of the widening gap between rich and poor. the deterioration of our public schools or the violence In our streets. Indeed. the causes of these problems are much more fundamental and it is time they were addressed. We as Americans. can handle them without resorting to left wing or right wing rhetoric.