www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=44394


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INVASION USA
Are illegals making
U.S. a leper colony?
'This is a real phenomenon. It's a public health threat. New York is endemic now, and nobody's noticed'

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Posted: May 22, 2005
5:11 p.m. Eastern

Leprosy, the contagious skin disease evoking thoughts of biblical and medieval times, is now making its mark in the United States, and many believe the influx of illegal aliens is a main factor.

"Americans should be told that diseases long eradicated in this country – tuberculosis, leprosy, polio, for example – and other extremely contagious diseases have been linked directly to illegals," Rep. J.D. Hayworth, R-Ariz., told the Business Journal of Phoenix. "For example, in 40 years, only 900 persons were afflicted by leprosy in the U.S.; in the past three years, more than 7,000 cases have been presented."

"This emerging crisis exposes the upside-down thinking of federal immigration policy," he continued. "While legal immigrants must undergo health screening prior to entering the U.S., illegal immigrants far more likely to be carrying contagious diseases are crawling under that safeguard and going undetected until they infect extraordinary numbers of American residents."

The number of cases of leprosy, now known as Hansen's disease, among immigrants to the U.S. has more than doubled since 2000, according to a news report from Columbia University.

While the overall figure is small compared to other countries, some researchers fear the trend could lead to the disease spreading to the U.S.-born population.

"It's creeping into the U.S.," Dr. William Levis, head of the New York Hansen's Disease Clinic, told Columbia News Service. "This is a real phenomenon. It's a public health threat. New York is endemic now, and nobody's noticed."

Levis thinks America could be on the verge of an epidemic.

"We just don't know when these epidemics are going to occur," he said. "But we're on the cusp of it here, because we're starting to see endemic cases that we didn't see 25 years ago."

According to Steve Pfeifer, head of statistics and epidemiology at the National Hansen's Disease Program, only about two dozen new cases are found each year in U.S.-born patients, with that number remaining stable for decades.

But Pfeifer suggests many aliens are coming to the U.S. specifically to get treated for their skin condition, due to the short time between many immigrants' entry to the U.S. and their diagnosis with leprosy.

"They're coming to be treated because they get treatment free and probably get better treatment here," he told Columbia. "Somebody down there diagnoses them and says, 'Hey, you've got leprosy, and your best course of action is probably high-tailing to the U.S.'"

The fear is that since the disease remains contagious until treatment is commenced, a surge of diagnosed-but-untreated patients could mean a spread of leprosy into the population of those born in America.

Pfeifer said he had not issued an official report on the dangerous trend, fearing that anti-immigration groups would become vocal against centers providing free health care for illegals.

"A lot of our cases are imported," said Dr. Terry Williams, who treats leprosy victims in Houston. "We see patients from everywhere – Africa, the Philippines, China, South America."

Williams confirms that some of his patients came to the U.S. specifically for treatment, telling Columbia, "Certainly we do see some of that. We've had even a couple of patients from Cuba who were put on a boat by Castro just to get them out of the country – they made their way here through Mexico and Central America basically just to get treated. ... We treat them; our job isn't to be immigration police."

But not all experts have such a gloomy outlook.

Dr. Denis Daumerie, head of the World Health Organization's leprosy-elimination program, thinks claims of immigrants causing a spike in U.S. leprosy are overstated.

"There is no risk of an epidemic of leprosy," he told Columbia. "There's absolutely no risk that the few immigrants who are affected by the disease, if they are diagnosed and treated, will spread the disease in the U.S."

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I only have so many hours in a day to hate illegals.

but they're just coming here to spread the diseases that Americans wont spread themselves

You are all racists!!!

Quoted: but they're just coming here to spread the diseases that Americans wont spread themselves

We should set up some sort of 'guest carrier' program and grant them amnesty.

this is just one example of why we will have socialized health care in this country and why I dont even know why I want to be a doctor.

I still can't believe that there are people quibbling over a little money to build a wall when it comes down to filthy maggot infested pague carrying illegal aliens.

But hey what do I know, it's all good. The disease, the crime, and the rapings as long as we can buy cheap farm produce at the grocery store.

After all I'd rather take the chance of getting robbed, raped, or leopracy than pay too much for a tomatoe or a head of lettuce. Good thing those illegals are here. I would hate to go back to the way it was before they came. Lord, Farm produce was just about immpossible to find. It was crazy!!! Farmers running around all year with their tractors putting them seeds into the ground. All that food ripening on the vine and then spoiling because there was no one to pick it. Lucky all of us just didn't up and die between the time slavery ended and the new slavery, time illegals began working.

Love to see the act of hiring an illegal be considered treason. Any buiness caught hiring illegals would have all of it's board members, presidents, vps, and C-something-something people (CIO, CEO, CFO, and so on) lined up and shot. That might start us on the road to recovery.

Quoted: this is just one example of why we will have socialized health care in this country and why I dont even know why I want to be a doctor.

Being a doctor is a good profession. Study, learn, work hard, take everything with a grain of salt, and try to enjoy yourself. We need more doctors.

I seem to recall something similar hapening with Multiple Antibiotic Resistant (as in untreatable) TB coming here from Mexico.  Not long ago it was found only in a small region of Mexico.  Now it's in all 48 contigus states.


-K

saw two Mex's at BabiesRUs with an illegal babymomma.  Lovely -- my taxes will pay for her baby's birth

Plus, I learned today via radio-channel-surfing that 88.1 FM is now "La Voz De Hampton Roads!"

well they are making us poorer or more poor.

Quoted: You are all racists!!!

+1

I used to think that machine gun towers along the border was the way to go.  Shiit, now I'll just be happy with dart guns loaded with vaccinations.

Quoted: I seem to recall something similar hapening with Multiple Antibiotic Resistant (as in untreatable) TB coming here from Mexico.  Not long ago it was found only in a small region of Mexico.  Now it's in all 48 contigus states. -K

about 7 years several employees (including me) in the hospital i used to work at all had positive skin tests at around the same time, it was traced back to one patient that we all had contact, i would give the name but that would be a HIPPA  violation, it was an illegal that we got it from.  TB treatment is not fun. 6 months of Inh, vit B supplement and rifampin with biweekly blood draws to check liver funtion, and now i get yearly Chest x-rays.(all free of charge though)