Obama lifts ban on immigrants with STDs

In March 2016, Obama opened our borders to immigrants with granuloma inguinale, chancroid, and lymphogranuloma venereum. These STDs will no longer be considered communicable diseases of public health significance.

The Department of Health and Human Services announced the rule Jan. 26, and it went into effect on March 28, 2016.

“Potential for onward transmission of these infections to the U.S. population is deemed to be extremely low,” HHS wrote in announcing the rule change. “While we do not have country or region-specific rates for these diseases, our review of the literature supports the supposition that the potential introduction of additional cases into the United States by aliens is likely to have a negligible impact on the U.S. population.”

The HHS said the cost of lifting the ban is “not economically significant, i.e. more than $100 million of costs and benefits in a single year.”

In that same Jan. 26 ruling, the Obama administration changed tuberculosis testing requirements for aliens wishing to enter the country. Previously all applicants were subject to a chest x-ray, “and for whom the radiograph shows an abnormality suggestive of tuberculosis disease, shall be required to undergo additional testing for tuberculosis.”

The new rule change dropped the “shall” requirement, saying the applicants now “may be required” to get further testing for tuberculosis.

With this rule change, the inadmissible communicable diseases that bar immigrants from entry would only include syphilis, gonorrhea, tuberculosis and leprosy.

This change in immigration rules by the Obama Administration was done without the consent of Congress.