YUMA, Ariz. (KAWC) – Rep. Raul Grijalva says he wants to learn more about the pressure immigration care is putting on Yuma Regional Medical Center.
Grijalva spoke to KAWC on Tuesday about the recent fox news article It reports that the hospital is “on the verge of collapse” because of illegal immigration.
In an interview with Fox and Friends, YRMC president Dr. Robert Trenschel said the hospital provided more than $20 million in treatment to asylum seekers in the past six months.
In response, Republican Rep. Paul Gosar, representing northern Yuma County, called for the border to be closed and all illegal immigrants to be deported.
Rep. Grijalva, a Democrat representing southern Yuma County, said he would like to know more about the numbers.
“I would like to confirm that it has been validated. I think that verification of that question is a very important point.”
just a few weeks ago Another Fox News article The city of Yuma also reportedly was on the verge of collapse.
However, recent U.S. Customs and Border Protection statistics show that illegal entry has actually declined sharply this year.
Last week, the Yuma Sector Border Patrol reported about 2,300 arrests. That’s down from his nearly 8,000 per week in December.
The decline is largely due to the continuation of Title 42 and new policies blocking asylum applications from immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela.
Still, lawmakers say they recognize the pressure the continued influx of immigrants is putting on communities in southern Yuma County.
“There is definitely a lot of stress, a lot of stress, in communities like Somerton San Luis that are on the front lines of dealing with the surge that is happening around asylum seekers and refugees.”
He said he believes the problem will go away once meaningful immigration reform begins.
“This pressure requires humanitarian assistance, resources for communities, but also investments in our home countries that were previously questioned so that the process does not require this surge coming to our borders- People can handle the process and conduct recruitment about certain fears in their home countries.”
Congressmen say all they need is the willingness of Republicans to start a debate about the real issues.
“Everything that goes on in this country has to do with what goes on at the border. There is no real discussion of policy changes. There is no real debate about how to accelerate, no real debate about the Dreamers, DACA students, or legislative efforts to address the issue of seasonal workers.”
For his part, he says he’s ready to get down to business.
“I would love to work with a colleague on the Republican side who is willing to discuss the very real issues going on along the border,” Grijalva said.
“You know, I’m trying to get some things done, and I think the president is about getting things done. How do you get it? And in matters of immigration, borders and land on borders, it becomes expendable,” he goes on to share.
Grijalva, meanwhile, says rhetoric is useless for people living along the border.
“And they continue to exaggerate and often lie about the stressful, demanding and critical border situation. and it is out of control, lawless, to the detriment of communities, and certainly completely changing the debate about what we need to do in the future. I think.”
