Senate Lifts HIV Immigration Ban
The Senate has voted to repeal a 20-year policy banning HIV-positive immigrants and nonimmigrants from entering the U.S. Only twelve countries worldwide have an anti-HIV/AIDS policy: Armenia, Colombia, Iraq, Oman, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Solomon Islands, South Korea, Sudan, Yemen and until yesterday, the United States.
Under current immigration law, public health experts at the Health and Human Services Department (HHS) make the decision whether or not a person with a communicable disease is eligible for admission. This applies to any disease except HIV/AIDS, which is the only medical condition that is a ground of inadmissibility. Special waivers are available but they can be difficult to obtain.
HIV-positive individuals are not eligible to become permanent residents. This can be a tragic blow to HIV-positive immigrants seeking to reunite with family in the United States. It also changes the immigration path of legal immigrants who become infected with HIV after arriving in the U.S.
Senators John Kerry (D-MA) and Gordon Smith (R-OR) led the effort to include the HIV immigration and travel ban as a provision to the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) bill. The Senate passed the bill with an 80-16 vote, committing $48 billion from the United States over the next five years to help Africa and other foreign countries combat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.
Assuming all goes well and the PEPFAR bill with provision is signed into law, the anti-HIV language will be removed from the Immigration and Nationality Act, and the HHS will be responsible for determining whether a person's HIV status is of public heath significance.
Comments
Dear Editor,
I am a HIV positive man originally from the UK who has been denied a Green card for 15 years based on my medical Status- I often felt that this was an issue overlooked by my American
friends- Often they were really shocked ( I have a white collar job, pay taxes, do charity work etc…. )
and would recommend a lawyer who I would visit just to be told the same info….There has been
a waiver in place but only if you could prove that I would be persicuted for my Homosexuality
in my Homeland- as the UK has more liberal laws than here- I couldn’t…. Basically there was
nothing they could do. The UK is not on the green card lottery and my best hope was to marry
and pray we were not investigated. Even organsations set up to help people like me couldn’t help,
because of where I come from - if id come from Venezula, I would have had more of a footing.
I managed to stay here on work visas - renewing them every 3 years ( which I am grateful for)
but it was very stress full as after all this time I have a house,a cat,a B.F- you know a life. I would
have to wait to see if I was approved….Eventually the stress did me in and I went to a lawyer
(recommended by another friend) who could find a way around the medical procedure ( there are
certain doctors who are sympathetic to the plight of HIV patients and who would ‘overlook’
the blood test ) I gave him around $7000 and he disappeared. Today I am not sure if my Green card
is in process and am too scared to find out. I have faith that things will work out.
The news above lightened my heart- Today I just got up and had to write to someone,
anyone, about this….It feels good to have hope .If only there could be an amnesty for people
like me…. I just wanted you to know how important this news was to me and others who
have been discriminated against for so many years. I have felt completely isolated…
Thank you for your consideration.
Thanks , Mr C
I can totally relate to you. I wish you the best of luck. Take excellent care of yourself.
I have been living in the USA on work visas for 6 years. I am HIV+, under sucessfull treatment, excellent health, highly skilled technical job, and I have health insurance.
I applied to adjustement of status to permanent resident, and was called for a “green card” interview late august. The officers requested that that an “HIV waiver” be submmited as part of my application.
My lawyer is puzzled why the officials requested waiver, since I do not satisfy the basic criteria, i.e. to have American spouse or children (and other ones..).
My lawyer ithinks that this may be a sign that things are changing after Senated passed this bill, even if it hasn’t been signed into law.
Also, CDC may be holding similar waiver cases waiting for a clear definition from the bill.
Howewver, I wish I could have find a doctor who would have overlooked my HIV status. Given waht is currently known about the infection, the current law is ‘barbaric” to sa the least.
well u.s immigration services should just change the law ,because is so hard on poeple living with Hiv.they send drugs to almost all parts of the world,yet they are disceminating.a person who is on drugs and is managing his life well,how is he a problem to the neighbour.still everybody is talking about human right. where is the rights?