WASHINGTON, D.C.– Representatives Debbie Dingell (MI-06) and Kim Schrier (WA-08) led 142of their House colleagues in sending a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio urging the State Department to reverse its decision to halt temporary medical-humanitarian visas for children from Gaza.
“On August 16th, the State Department announced it will stop approving all visitor visas for people from the war-torn Gaza strip -- including children in need of urgent medical care -- while conducting a “full and thorough review of the processes and procedures” used to issue these visas,” the lawmakers write. “This pause comes in the wake of severely injured Palestinian children arriving in the United States on temporary visas to receive medical care in recent weeks. The announcement of the sudden pause came via social media and contained no details on what a full and thorough review entails or any evidence of security risks. The lack of clarity regarding how long this halt will last is concerning.”
“This pause will deny children the medical care they desperately need. It is wrong to prevent children who are caught in the middle of this horrific conflict from receiving lifesaving medical care,” the lawmakers continue. “In addition, this decision ignores the fact that all Palestinians leaving Gaza for medical treatment or to accompany family members receiving medical treatment are already subject to rigorous vetting by the Israeli government, including an Israeli security clearance, identity verification, and an assessment whether they are linked to Hamas.
“Prior to this announcement, several children from Gaza have come to the United States to receive medical treatment. These cases have gone on without incident,” the lawmakers conclude. “We appeal to you to immediately reverse the State Department’s decision and resume allowing those from Gaza with approved temporary medical-humanitarian visas to enter the United States to receive the lifesaving care they need.
The lawmakers requested the Department provide the following information:
A detailed explanation of the specific concerns or procedural issues identified that led to the suspension of visas.
The criteria and timeline for the ongoing review process, how long it is expected to take, and what safeguards are being considered to prevent interruption of emergency medical care programs.
A commitment to temporarily exempt urgent medical-humanitarian cases involving children from Gaza from the suspension until the review is complete.
View the full text of the letter and complete list of signing members here.
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Houlahan is an Air Force veteran, engineer, entrepreneur, educator, and nonprofit leader. She is serving her fourth consecutive term representing the people of Pennsylvania’s 6th Congressional District, which encompasses Chester County and southern Berks County. Houlahan is the first female veteran to be named as Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Committee’s Military Personnel Subcommittee and a member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Houlahan is also chair of the Economic Growth and Cost of Living Task Force on the New Democrat Coalition.
