There are many immigrants that are not able to afford health care. Federal laws have prevented this. There are more than 5 million immigrant people living in the U.S. without health insurance. Even a foreign born child of illegal immigrants automatically becomes illegal too and cannot get health insurance.

I currently work at a hospital where we take care of a large Hispanic immigrant population. I have seen firsthand how immigration can affect a person's health care availability. There are many immigrants that will not go to the doctor when they're sick because they can't afford it. In order to succeed in life, you need your health. These immigrants may not have the health care access they need.

Many Hispanic immigrants, whether or not they have insurance, face many obstacles in the medical world. For example, there are language barriers such as not being able to understand and speak English or not having a proper education. There are not always translators available as needed to keep up with the growing needs of immigrants or if you come to America from Honduras and only have a third grade education, how hard is it to find a job and be able to find and utilize health care services? At my job, we are taught to adjust to the Hispanic population and learn their language. This is sometimes difficult and from both ends I can see how these immigrants face many challenges in health care.

I often wonder what we can do to help these immigrants facing health care challenges before it's too late. Some immigrants don't even have proper transportation to get to and from the doctor's office and clinics.Their illnesses won't be treated until they are really problematic or in some cases fatal. Many immigrants who do not have the accessibility to proper health care will receive a delay in care. For example, one immigrant may have to wait until their heart condition or kidney infection gets to a bad point (more emergency room visits) when it could have been prevented or managed in the first place if they had proper health insurance.

Public health insurance such as Medicaid is not always available for immigrants. Additionally, emergency Medicaid is also not always available depending on the patient's condition. Some health care facilities will provide discounted care through health clinics to immigrants such as Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center that provides medical care to immigrants at a discounted price. However, these clinics are not located everywhere.

Another huge obstacle that immigrants may face in the medical world is resolving mental health issues. Sometimes immigrants may have experienced violence or rape and don't know how to cope with it. In some cultures, some people may not know to how to ask for help or don't find it necessary.

Even though immigrants face many challenges in health care, many are just thriving to survive in America. Despite their legality status, it must be known that most immigrants are glad to be in America and just want the same opportunities as everyone else. They want to have a better life, support their families and contribute to society. So before you judge an immigrant, listen to their story. Maybe you can help in some small way in a place where health care, a gift so many of us take for granted, can be so far out of reach for so many people.