US Adds New Grounds To Deny Visas: Obesity, Diabetes, Heart Disease

Foreign nationals applying for a visa to live in the US might be rejected if they have health conditions such as diabetes or obesity, according to a government directive issued by the Trump administration on Thursday.

The guidelines were issued by the State Department, which says that people with issues could become a "public charge" and potentially drain the US resources. The guidelines were sent through cable to American embassies and consulates, reported KFF Health News, based in Washington.

While screening for communicable diseases, checking vaccination history, infectious diseases and mental health conditions have always been part of the visa application process; the new guidelines add new medical conditions to be considered.

According to the report, the cable says, "You must consider an applicant's health. Certain medical conditions – including, but not limited to, cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases, cancers, diabetes, metabolic diseases, neurological diseases, and mental health conditions – can require hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of care."

Visa officers have also been instructed to assess if applicants are capable of paying for the medical treatment.

However, a senior attorney for the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, a nonprofit legal aid group, Charles Wheeler, has said that although the guidelines are for all visas, it will likely be used only for permanent residency cases.

"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 institutionalisation at government expense?" the cable says.

Noting a potential complication with visa officers being directed to develop their own thoughts about medical issues, Wheeler said, "That's troubling because they're not medically trained, they have no experience in this area, and they shouldn't be making projections based on their own personal knowledge or bias."

Apart from the applications, the guidance also directs visa officers to assess the health of family members such as children or older parents. "Do any of the dependents have disabilities, chronic medical conditions, or other special needs and require care such that the applicant cannot maintain employment?" it says.

Sophia Genovese, an immigration lawyer at Georgetown University, said that the guidelines encourage visa officers to speculate on the cost of applicants' medical care and their ability to get employed in the US, judging by their medical history, according to the KFF report.