First, Do No Harm: Tort Liability, Regulation and the Forced Repatriation of Undocumented Immigrants

Abstract

In Montejo v. Martin Memorial Medical Center, a jury found that it was not unreasonable for a hospital to return a traumatically injured, undocumented immigrant to his native country against the will of his guardian. Also known as forced repatriation, the practice of international patient dumping results from the disjointed federal regulations governing the intersection of immigration and health care law. This Comment examines the underlying causes of forced repatriation and whether tort liability is a suitable means for preventing this practice. It concludes that direct regulation, rather than tort law, is a preferable method of preventing this harm and calls upon Congress to adopt uniform regulations regarding the medical transfer of all patients to foreign hospitals, regardless of their immigration status.