On the recordJuly 24, 2019
To close. Mr. Chairman, this bill is an important step forward to make sure that we have minimal standards at CBP facilities. It is simply incorrect to assert that the minimum standards provided for in this bill are extravagant extensions of healthcare to people seeking assistance. If you have a medical emergency, you should call for an ambulance. If you are having a heart attack, you should go to a hospital and be treated. If you have a medical emergency, you have to be dealt with under the section on page 4. If there is an indication of a problem, you have to have the ability to reach out to an expert by phone, if necessary, or to get some guidance on what to do. This is just common sense. We have relied on Dr. Ruiz, who saw this very system work in one of the hemisphere's poorest nations--Haiti--after an earthquake where they had no infrastructure. The nonprofits working there could do this. I have no doubt that the richest nation on Earth and the Department of Homeland Security could do as well as nonprofits in Haiti after the earthquake. And to suggest that they couldn't, I think is really a problem. I would like to note that if we said that veterans are going to get the care outlined in this bill, it would be a dramatic reduction in the care provided to veterans because this is a minimal standard.…
