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June 9, 2026
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New NILC Resource Helps Medical Staff Advocate for Patients in Immigration Custody
WASHINGTON — The National Immigration Law Center (NILC) published new guidance today for hospitals and clinics caring for patients in immigration custody, a challenge that medical staff are increasingly facing as a result of the Trump administration’s mass deportations and detentions policies.
“Advocating On Behalf of Patients in Immigration Custody: A Resource for Health Care Providers & Medical Staff” explains the laws and policies related to patients who are detained by immigration agents. Co-authored by NILC staff and Dr. Theresa Cheng, an assistant clinical professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine at UCSF-Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and a civil rights attorney, the resource grounds the information in the day-to-day realities of patient care.
Increasingly, patients are arriving at health care facilities accompanied by and in the custody of immigration officers. Medical providers and patients are experiencing this alongside other stark changes in immigration policy, including the elimination of long-standing restrictions on immigration arrests at or near hospitals and other sensitive locations.
“As clinicians, we take an oath to provide the best care for our patients, and now with immigration enforcement entering hospitals, clinicians need clear guidance before a crisis at the bedside creates dangerous situations for staff and patients,” said Dr. Theresa Cheng. “My hope for this resource is to help medical staff feel supported as they navigate the impact of immigration policies that threaten patient safety, deepen moral injury, and undermine the trust that is foundational to healthcare. Hospitals and clinics must remain places of healing, not weaponized as extensions of state violence and intimidation.”
“When the government chooses to detain people, they take on the enormous responsibility of ensuring their physical well-being. When someone’s condition requires medical care, DHS must bring patients in for care and allow medical workers to do what they are trained to do best: protect health,” said Jennifer Ibañez Whitlock, senior policy counsel at NILC. “At the same time, medical workers are being put in an extremely difficult position as they try to provide the best care for their patients while dealing with the presence, and sometimes even interference, of immigration officers and guards. This guide is meant to help health care providers navigate the situation so they can focus on their duty of care and do their best to ensure clinics and hospitals remain safe places for our communities.”
View the full report here: Advocating On Behalf of Patients in Immigration Custody: A Resource for Health Care Providers and Medical Staff
View additional commentary here: Dignified Health Care Shouldn’t Stop With ICE Detention
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