The Trump administration has quietly issued a sweeping directive instructing U.S. embassies and consulates worldwide to tighten visa‐issuance standards for applicants with costly medical conditions.
The new policy will give visa officers discretion to deny individuals with conditions such as diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, and mental‐health disorders if their lifetime care is deemed likely to become a burden on U.S. taxpayers.
According to KFF Health News, the U.S. Department of State reportedly instructs consular officers to assess whether visa applicants, and in some cases, their dependents, could become a “public charge” due to medical costs over their expected lifespan. Conditions flagged in the guidance include, but are not limited to:
- Cardiovascular diseases
- Respiratory diseases
- Cancers
- Diabetes and metabolic diseases
- Neurological or mental health disorders
- Obesity, explicitly mentioned as a red flag due to its connection to sleep apnea, asthma, hypertension, and other expensive conditions.
“Does the applicant have adequate financial resources to cover the costs of such care over his entire expected lifespan without seeking public cash assistance or long-term institutionalization at government expense?” the guidance stated.
“Self-sufficiency has been a long-standing principle of US immigration policy … and the public-charge ground of inadmissibility has been a part of our immigration law for more than 100 years.”
The Trump administration frames this directive as a taxpayer-protection measure.
A spokesperson for the State Department told Fox News, “It’s no secret the Trump administration is putting the interests of the American people first. This includes enforcing policies that ensure our immigration system is not a burden on the American taxpayer.”
Hellbound and Down 