A US-born child of foreign citizens needs to come to US for treatment

A US-born child of foreign citizens needs to come to US for treatment - how? Could non-US parent accompany?

** WARNING: People who use this question as an excuse to rant about immigrants and/or their health care costs will be reported to Yahoo as abusive. Answer only if you are offering relevant information on how to proceed.**

Family friends who are non-US nationals have a daughter who was born in the U.S. and is very ill. The doctors at the best hospital in their country, El Salvador, have told them that she needs a bone-marrow transplant and that she would need to go back to the U.S. to have it done. The girl is 9 years old, so she couldn't exactly come by herself. Additionally, the family has little income and it's hard to see how either parent could qualify for any kind of visa to accompany her, nor quite how her medical expenses would be handled. They do have at least one family member living here -- a brother-in-law, I think -- whose papers are in order and who would like to bring her for treatment.

(1) Who do they approach? (or, if we can help, who can WE approach? I'm a native US citizen, but neither my spouse nor I are related to the child's family. We live in the United States.)
(2) What do they need, or who will know what they need?

** WARNING: People who use this question as an excuse to rant about immigrants and/or their health care costs will be reported to Yahoo as abusive. Answer only if you are offering relevant information on how to proceed.**

wenteast

Obviously, as you know, she can travel anytime she wants, as she's a citizen. It will be EXTREMELY difficult, but not impossible, for a parent to get a visa -- after all, it sounds as if they've done a pretty big number on our immigration laws as it is. This is relevant because you need to ascertain what led them to go back to Salvador -- did they leave voluntarily? Deported? For how long were they illegal in the U.S., and when did they leave? This is important because the type of visa ineligibility that they have -- and consequently how long they are barred from the U.S. -- depends on these answers.

As I said, it's not impossible. I have friends in Guatemala from my posting there who were exactly the same in all respects -- illegals in the U.S., milked the system, had their kids there, etc, until they were deported. BUT -- Amcit daughter needed medical treatment, and on that basis the U.S. Embassy there has been kind enough to give the mom several very limited visas to return and accompany her for that purpose only.

As you can tell, I am extremely unsympathetic to those who break our laws, and who by our generosity create obligations on our part to use against us, some of which are very expensive. Your friends' daughter, for example, will likely receive hundreds of thousands of dollars of benefits from John Q. Taxpayer just because her parents managed to give birth to her there.

But, at the end of the day, she's still a U.S. citizen, no matter what kind of fraud or malfeasance made her so. And she has a legitimate medical need.

SO.... my advice is -- have them get everything in order -- donor and payment for the treatment being paramount. You can help them by making sure their plans are realistic and that they have an end-game in mind (i.e. NOT "Pienso quedarme alla por tres anos durante el tratamiento" that will NOT fly). THEN, have one parent apply for a visa, being COMPLETELY honest about everything they did wrong in the past. They will likely need to ask for a waiver of some kind depending on their violations of the law. A consular officer is not obligated to allow them to apply for the waiver -- it's at his or her discretion. But just maybe due to the child's need, they will grant it.

Good luck to them.

Spotter 888

Find a charitable organization that is willing to foot the bill for the child. They will make representations for the travel papers as well. This will give legitimacy to their claim. Remember, it is not only medical treatment but finding the donor as well. Maybe they should find a donor in their country first (relatives being there). That person could come along too.

chattterus

Someone has to provide the money. Find a charity that will provide the money and any hospital will perform the surgery.

Also you need to find a donor. Until you have a donor, the rest is pointless. Transplants are scarce resources. I don't think a non-american person can even get on the donor list in the US.

+.*MiSs PriiNce$s*.+

I don't know the US policy cause I'm from England but to help with the money issue, they could make a charity to raise money for their daughter. I know that bone marrow transplants have a long waiting list! It's so sad, God help her!

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