美国国家公共电台 NPR Trump Administration Ends Protection For Migrants' Medical Care

 

NOEL KING, HOST:

U.S. Citizenship¹ and Immigration Services has notified migrants who are suffering from serious medical conditions that they will not be allowed to stay in this country for treatment. The agency told these people that they have to leave in 33 days. Now migrant advocates say lives are at stake. From member station WBUR, Shannon Dooling has the story.

SHANNON DOOLING, BYLINE²: The program known as Medical Deferred³ Action allows people to remain in the U.S. for two-year periods if they can prove lifesaving medical treatment is only available to them here. Many of the people affected⁴ by the policy change came to the U.S. with some sort of visa or other status and are requesting to stay beyond those terms to receive medical care. Immigrant advocates and attorneys gathered in Boston, outraged⁵ by the denials, say such extensions have been routinely granted by USCIS. Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey says families are now facing an impossible choice.

ED MARKEY: Face the threat of Trump's deportation⁶ force, or families and patients can suspend treatment and return to their home countries, which could be a de facto death sentence.

DOOLING: Sixteen-year-old Jonathan Sanchez, who was born in Honduras, has a pending⁷ request with USCIS. He was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis as a baby after his parents sent blood samples to the U.S. His sister died of the disease 18 years ago after she was unable to secure specialized⁸ treatment in Honduras. The Sanchez family entered the U.S. on tourist visas in 2016 and were able to get an extension. But the teen's treatment is ongoing⁹. Now Sanchez says he's feeling stressed and scared that he too will be denied.

JONATHAN SANCHEZ: If they deny the program, then I need to go back to my country. And I'll probably die because, in my country, there is no treatment for CF.

DOOLING: The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service told WBUR it's no longer considering most deferrals of deportation for people with serious medical conditions, and the requests are now being submitted to Immigration and Customs Enforcement for consideration. It's unclear what such a change would mean for these immigrants. ICE didn't respond to requests for clarification. Immigration attorneys say the denial letters to their clients don't mention a new process with ICE.

For NPR News, I'm Shannon Dooling in Boston.

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1 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 deferred   

adj.延期的，缓召的v.拖延，延缓，推迟( defer的过去式和过去分词 )；服从某人的意愿，遵从

参考例句：

• The department deferred the decision for six months. 这个部门推迟了六个月才作决定。
• a tax-deferred savings plan 延税储蓄计划

4 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

5 outraged   

a.震惊的，义愤填膺的

参考例句：

• Members of Parliament were outraged by the news of the assassination. 议会议员们被这暗杀的消息激怒了。
• He was outraged by their behavior. 他们的行为使他感到愤慨。

6 deportation   

n.驱逐，放逐

参考例句：

• The government issued a deportation order against the four men.政府发出了对那4名男子的驱逐令。
• Years ago convicted criminals in England could face deportation to Australia.很多年以前，英国已定罪的犯人可能被驱逐到澳大利亚。

7 pending   

prep.直到，等待…期间；adj.待定的；迫近的

参考例句：

• The lawsuit is still pending in the state court.这案子仍在州法庭等待定夺。
• He knew my examination was pending.他知道我就要考试了。

8 specialized   

adj.专门的，专业化的

参考例句：

• There are many specialized agencies in the United Nations.联合国有许多专门机构。
• These tools are very specialized.这些是专用工具。

9 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。