Philadelphia Becomes First U.S. City to Ban Sending Illegal Aliens to Their Native Countries for Medical Care

The sanctuary city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the first city in the United States to ban sending illegal aliens to their native countries to receive long-term medical care.

The Democrat-controlled Philadelphia City Council, which has just one Republican, voted 14-1 to approve a bill that will ban hospitals in the city from sending illegal aliens to their native countries when they need long-term medical care.

Effectively, the bill will require hospitals to keep illegal aliens needing medical attention in Philadelphia when they would otherwise be sent to their native countries.

According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, hospitals that receive complaints over the issue will be investigated by city agencies:

Under the new law, patients must give their informed consent to be repatriated after the circumstances have been explained to them orally and in writing — and in a language they understand, if they are not proficient in English.

A hospital must stop efforts toward repatriation if a patient does not consent. Patients who are incompetent cannot consent. The law requires hospitals to explore a patient’s eligibility for emergency health insurance and to produce a written report explaining why removal to another country is appropriate.

Complaints against a hospital will trigger a Health Department investigation.

Annually, Americans are forced to subsidize medical care for illegal aliens to the tune of $18.5 billion. In 2022 alone, Americans footed the bill for more than $316 million in medical care for border crossers and illegal aliens who were detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jbinder@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter here.