As the Trump administration's hardline immigration policies continue to unfold, a worrying trend is emerging in the US healthcare sector: thousands of migrant nurses and care assistants are losing their jobs, threatening patient care and staffing levels nationwide.
One such individual is Janeth, a 50-year-old nursing assistant from Honduras, who has dedicated over two decades to her profession in the United States. Despite winning a prestigious national nursing award seven times, Janeth recently lost her job due to her changed immigration status. She had been living and working in the US under Temporary Protected Status (TPS), a programme designed for individuals from countries deemed unsafe for return due to conflict or environmental disaster. The sudden withdrawal of this status has upended her life, forcing her and her 85-year-old mother to move in with her daughter as she can no longer afford her mortgage.
The impact of these policies extends far beyond individual lives, profoundly affecting patient care. John Jacoby's testimonial is a stark reminder of the human cost: his mother Dolores was cared for by Janeth over a decade ago after being diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia and given only three months to live. Thanks in large part to Janeth's dedication, Dolores lived for another three years. Mr Jacoby credits Janeth's compassionate care as 'irreplaceable', stating, 'They need to take her back for the patients. I just hope I don’t ever end up in a hospital bed without someone like [her] by my side.'
These policies are straining an already stretched US healthcare system, where approximately one in six hospital workers directly involved in patient care is an immigrant. Furthermore, an estimated 4% of hospital workers are not naturalised citizens. Experts warn that these workers fill critical gaps that cannot be easily replaced, leading to potential shortages in care provision. Kimberly Pierce Burke, Executive Director of the Alliance of Independent Academic Medical Centers, noted that while immigration pathways are being restricted, the demand for patient care continues unabated. FWD.us, an immigration advocacy organisation, estimates that by early 2025, nearly 1.3 million people in the US were on TPS, with at least 50,000 of those working in the healthcare sector.
The current administration's focus on mass deportations and stripping legal status from immigrants is creating a humanitarian crisis within the healthcare sector. The loss of experienced and dedicated professionals like Janeth not only devastates individual lives but also risks further destabilising essential medical services across the United States, underscoring the need for a more humane approach to immigration policy that prioritises patient care.