CBP refuses to publicly reveal number of sick migrants

[mfcorey1]

(CNN) - Despite outbreaks of flu, tuberculosis and chickenpox, US Customs and Border Protection refuses to tell the public how many migrants in detention facilities have contagious diseases.

Doctors have long been concerned that these congested settings are breeding grounds for serious illnesses.

They create facilities that encourage the spread of infectious agents," said Dr. William Schaffner, an adviser to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on vaccine issues.

A CBP senior health official said his agency keeps track of infectious diseases among the hundreds of thousands of migrants who pass through CBP detention facilities but declined to release that data.

This stands in stark contrast to how other entities handle disease statistics. State and county health departments across the United States track ongoing case counts for dozens of infectious diseases and make that information available online. Similarly, the United Nations posts disease statistics about refugees online.

Public health experts sharply criticized CBP for what they called the agency's lack of transparency.

"What are they scared of?" asked Dr. Paul Spiegel, a former senior official at the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, who is now the director of the Center for Humanitarian Health at Johns Hopkins University.

https://www.news4jax.com/health/cbp-refuses-to-publicly-reveal-number-of-sick-migrants

[kysrsoze]

1. People should watch "Years and Years." This situation is frighteningly close to that show's plot.

[abqtommy]

2. Fascist governments are as transparent as a brick wall...