Clinicians must avoid violating professional ethical principles and patients’ legal rights and they may not ever discriminate. So, what does that mean in practice?
AMA J Ethics. 2016;18(3):229-236. doi:
10.1001/journalofethics.2016.18.3.ecas4-1603.
Eleven million undocumented immigrants in the United States, including children, face barriers to health. By practicing 4 elements of sanctuary health care, clinicians and organizations can help.
AMA J Ethics. 2020;22(8):E741-742. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2020.741.
Grace Kim, Uriel Sanchez Molina, and Altaf Saadi, MD, MSHPM
Undocumented patients can be subject to discrimination, reporting, detention, or deportation in violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, so what goes in the record is critical.
AMA J Ethics. 2019;21(1):E8-16. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2019.8.
When combined with motivation to provide good care, uncertainty about how to do so for patients who are excluded from key public insurance provisions can give rise to workarounds. Their practical and ethical complexities should be recognized when considering how to best serve immigrant communities.
AMA J Ethics. 2019;21(1):E100-105. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2019.100.
Mark G. Kuczewski, PhD, Johana Mejias-Beck, MD, and Amy Blair, MD
Patients’ immigration concerns can be addressed when clinicians adopt a public health approach to caring: wearing buttons, distributing brochures, inviting experience sharing, and directing patients to needed resources.
AMA J Ethics. 2019;21(1):E78-85. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2019.78.
Ruth L. Ackah, MD, Rohini R. Sigireddi, and Bhamidipati V. R. Murthy, MD
Although undocumented immigrants contribute to the pool of available organs and to the US tax base, they are not eligible for organ transplantation in most US states.
AMA J Ethics. 2019;21(1):E17-25. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2019.17.
Going to so-called safety-net clinics could mean being subject to different standards of care than those in other health care delivery settings. Learners who understand social determinants of health might be able to help patients navigate the system and access community resources.
AMA J Ethics. 2019;21(1):E44-49. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2019.44.
Regularly scheduled dialysis is not standard of care for most undocumented immigrants in the United States, so preventative care, and advocacy for it, is needed.
AMA J Ethics. 2019;21(1):E86-92. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2019.86.