Governor Greg Abbott has issued a stark warning that there “will be consequences” for defying his Executive Order requiring hospitals in Texas to ask patients if they are citizens of the United States.
The governor’s order, issued on August 8, requires hospitals that accept Medicaid or Children’s Health Insurance Plan coverage to ask patients to include the question, “Are you a U.S. citizen?” on patient intake forms.
The purpose of the mandate is to collect billing information on illegal immigrants who use Texas public hospitals for inpatient and emergency care so the state can bill the federal government for those costs.
The American Civil Liberties Union and other left-wing advocacy groups have challenged the legality of the mandate, which took took effect on Nov. 1, and some medical professionals have taken to social media to urge colleagues to defy the measure.
The San Antonio Metropolitan Health District reportedly released a flyer advising illegal immigrant patients to refuse to answer the question on admission forms.
“You do not have to answer the citizenship question if you don’t want to. Your answer will not affect your care — you will not be turned away,” the flyer states. “You have a right to life-saving care, regardless of citizenship or immigration status.”
In a viral TikTok post, an adult congenital cardiologist at Texas Children’s Hospital, encouraged fellow travelers to ignore the citizenship status question.
Dr. Tony Pastor, also an assistant professor at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, posted the message on TikTok on November 11.
Pastor began by saying he was “a gay doctor” who lives in Texas and sometimes “goes viral” for posting things like “cupid ears on my boyfriend,” and “thirst traps frankly a lot of the time.”
A “thirst trap” is a social media post that is intended to attract attention or make people sexually interested in the poster.
Pastor said this time his post would address the “very important” matter of Abbott’s “decree.”
“We were told today that people do not actually have to answer the question,” Pastor said. “So my proposal to everyone who’s seeing this is, just know that you do not have to answer this question.”
He added, “Wouldn’t it be amazing if everyone who comes in doesn’t answer it, and really messes with whatever data they’re looking for?”
The Houston physician also complained that Abbott’s executive order was making people “super uncomfortable.”
“It has made all of us physicians and providers super uncomfortable,” he said. “No one has told us what people are going to do with this information. The way the country’s moving, I worry that this is information that people are going to use to deport people…maybe it’s just a deterrent to try to get people that are not documented to (not) come to hospitals, but even if that’s the motive, it’s really messed up,” he said. “You should come to a hospital if you’re sick. You should get health care if you’re sick.”
@drtonypastor Important message ❤️ #texas #lgbt🌈 #texaslatinos #doctorsoftiktok #nursesoftiktok #nurse #medstudent #hospital #texas
The governor’s office however has made clear that Texas Health and Human Services Commission will “direct hospitals to inform the patient that federal law mandates that any response to such questions will not affect patient care.”
As of Nov. 25, Pastor’s video had garnered over 1.2 million views, over 247,000 likes 27, 500 shares and 13,500 saves.
On Sunday Abbott addressed Pastor’s employers in a terse post on X.
“Hey Texas Children’s Hospital & Baylor College of Medicine, this doctor is putting your Medicaid and Medicare funding at risk,” the Texas Governor warned. “You better think twice & have crystal clear records
Abbott added: “There will be consequences for failing to follow the law in the Executive Order.”
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