The influx of illegal immigrants without the ability to cover their medical expenses is placing immense strain on Denver Health, the hospital system in Denver, Colorado. As highlighted in a report by the Denver Post, the situation has reached a critical point, with the hospital on the verge of collapse due to the overwhelming number of unpaid medical bills from illegal aliens.
The Post reports:
“In 2023, Denver Health provided about $136 million in care that it didn’t receive compensation for, CEO Donna Lynne told the Denver City Council’s finance and government committee last week. That figure includes care to people covered by Medicaid when the rates the program paid didn’t cover the full costs, she said. About $100 million of that went to people living in Denver.
“Denver Health cut costs last year by closing 15 beds that could be used for patients needing psychiatric or addiction treatment, reducing the raises it had planned as a way to retain employees, and postponing renovations on its oldest clinics, Lynne said.
“What I think is not being said is that Denver Health is at a critical, critical point, and that we need to take this up in 2024,” she said. “Because our costs exceed our revenues, we are turning down patients every day, particularly in the area of mental health and substance abuse.”
According to Donna Lynne, the CEO of Denver Health, approximately 8,000 individuals who crossed the border and illegal immigrants residing in Denver made around 20,000 visits to the hospital system in 2023. This has resulted in millions of dollars in unpaid medical bills, burdening the local taxpayers.
Lynne expressed concern that illegal immigration is overwhelming the city’s hospital system. As previously reported by Breitbart News, illegal immigration often leads to significant unpaid medical costs, placing a heavy financial burden on American taxpayers and pushing hospital systems to their limits. The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) has estimated that illegal immigration costs the nation’s hospital systems a minimum of $23 billion annually.