Latest news with #TotalParenteralNutrition
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
4-year-old girl's life-saving treatment at risk after family's legal immigration status is revoked
A Mexican girl is at risk of losing access to the life-saving treatment she has been receiving in Los Angeles after her family's legal immigration status was abruptly revoked. Her family is now fighting to have their status reinstated. 'If they deport us and take away my daughter's access to her specialized care, she will die,' Deysi Vargas, the girl's mother, said Wednesday in her native Spanish during a news conference. Her 4-year-old daughter, who is being identified only by the initials S.G.V., was born with a defect in her small intestines known as short bowel syndrome. The condition does not allow her body to absorb nutrients from regular food. Instead, the girl receives all the nutrients she needs intravenously through a treatment known as Total Parenteral Nutrition, or TPN. "The doctors that are treating her have stated very clearly that if her treatment is interrupted, she will die within days," Gina Amato, an attorney for the family, told NBC News. "This is a classic example where deportation would equal death for this child. It is a very desperate situation.' To prevent malnutrition, S.G.V. receives her TPN treatment each night at home for at least 14 hours, the mother and her attorneys said. During the day, when the girl goes to pre-school or accompanies her mother to the supermarket, S.G.V. wears a portable version of the treatment in a backpack. At least four times a day, Vargas spends one hour connecting her daughter to gastric tubes that attach to the backpack containing the nutrients she needs. The company that manufactures the equipment that delivers the intravenous nutrition the girl needs does "not allow the equipment to travel outside the United States," Amato said at the news conference, adding that few places outside the U.S. can safely and effectively administer this treatment. Before coming to the United States nearly two years ago, S.G.V. 'was in really terrible shape and was having a very difficult time surviving,' Amato said. The girl had been receiving medical care in Mexico, spending many hours in a hospital bed receiving her nutrients intravenously, according to Amato and Vargas. S.G.V. was "not growing or getting any better," Vargas said. Desperate to get better medical care for their daughter, Vargas and her partner used the now-defunct CBP One app on July 2023 to legally enter the U.S. through the southern border. The family was then granted humanitarian parole for the purpose of seeking medical treatment for S.G.V. The girl was quickly taken to a hospital in San Diego upon their arrival because she was in such poor health, the family and their attorneys said. A year later, she was referred to the Children's Hospital in Los Angeles, which has one of the nation's best gastroenterology programs. Doctors there have been caring for S.G.V. for the past year, also monitoring the TPN treatment she receives. "Now, with the help my daughter receives in the United States, my daughter has the opportunity to leave the hospital, see the world, and live like a child her age," Vargas said. S.G.V. was at the news conference with her TPN backpack. She spent most of the time playing cards and making some arts and crafts to show how the treatment has helped improve her quality of life. According to the family's legal team, the family's humanitarian parole was set to expire at the end of July and Vargas was fighting to get it extended. But last month, the family received a notice via email from the Department of Homeland Security terminating their parole and work authorization. "If you do not depart the United States immediately you will be subject to potential law enforcement actions that will result in your removal from the United States — unless you have otherwise obtained a lawful basis to remain here," the notice, which was obtained by NBC News, reads. 'Clearly they did not give individualized consideration to this case, because had they done so,' Amato told NBC News, 'we believe that they would not have made this decision given the really poor condition of this child.' The notice also said, "DHS encourages you to leave immediately on your own," using the CBP Home mobile app, which has a self-deportation feature. The notice did not state a reason for revoking the family's parole other than DHS "exercising its discretion." According to attorneys at Public Counsel, the legal firm representing the family, no one in the family has any convictions. But the girl's father, who is not married to Vargas, has a pending charge stemming from "a misunderstanding at the San Diego hospital when he raised his voice" when discussing his daughter's care in an area "where he did not understand he could not be loud." Attorneys believe the charge will likely "be dismissed because he's complying with the anger management classes the courts requested of him," they said. "This does not influence the legality of Deysi's case." Believing the DHS notice was perhaps sent by mistake, attorneys for the family wrote a letter to federal immigration authorities on May 9. "They have not violated the terms of their parole," the letter, which was obtained by NBC News, reads. "We believe this notice was issued in error. Please correct this error." Still, the family continued receiving notices about their parole's termination, Amato said during the press conference. So, they filed a new application for humanitarian parole through the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The agency did not respond to a request for comment. A senior DHS official insisted to NBC News via email that reports about the family "actively being deported are FALSE. This family applied with USCIS for humanitarian parole on May 14, 2025, and the application is still being considered.' In the meantime, 'the family is very much in limbo, and they're terrified,' Amato said. 'They're no longer in status and they're no longer authorized to work in the U.S. So, they face many fears.' This article was originally published on
NBC News
2 days ago
- Health
- NBC News
4-year-old girl's life-saving treatment at risk after family's legal immigration status is revoked
A Mexican girl is at risk of losing access to the life-saving treatment she has been receiving in Los Angeles after her family's legal immigration status was abruptly revoked. Her family is now fighting to have their status reinstated. 'If they deport us and take away my daughter's access to her specialized care, she will die,' Deysi Vargas, the girl's mother, said Wednesday in her native Spanish during a news conference. Her 4-year-old daughter, who is being identified only by the initials S.G.V., was born with a defect in her small intestines known as short bowel syndrome. The condition does not allow her body to absorb nutrients from regular food. Instead, the girl receives all the nutrients she needs intravenously through a treatment known as Total Parenteral Nutrition, or TPN. "The doctors that are treating her have stated very clearly that if her treatment is interrupted, she will die within days," Gina Amato, an attorney for the family, told NBC News. "This is a classic example where deportation would equal death for this child. It is a very desperate situation.' To prevent malnutrition, S.G.V. receives her TPN treatment each night at home for at least 14 hours, the mother and her attorneys said. During the day, when the girl goes to pre-school or accompanies her mother to the supermarket, S.G.V. wears a portable version of the treatment in a backpack. At least four times a day, Vargas spends one hour connecting her daughter to gastric tubes that attach to the backpack containing the nutrients she needs. The company that manufactures the equipment that delivers the intravenous nutrition the girl needs does "not allow the equipment to travel outside the United States," Amato said at the news conference, adding that few places outside the U.S. can safely and effectively administer this treatment. Before coming to the United States nearly two years ago, S.G.V. 'was in really terrible shape and was having a very difficult time surviving,' Amato said. The girl had been receiving medical care in Mexico, spending many hours in a hospital bed receiving her nutrients intravenously, according to Amato and Vargas. S.G.V. was "not growing or getting any better," Vargas said. Desperate to get better medical care for their daughter, Vargas and her partner used the now-defunct CBP One app on July 2023 to legally enter the U.S. through the southern border. The family was then granted humanitarian parole for the purpose of seeking medical treatment for S.G.V. The girl was quickly taken to a hospital in San Diego upon their arrival because she was in such poor health, the family and their attorneys said. A year later, she was referred to the Children's Hospital in Los Angeles, which has one of the nation's best gastroenterology programs. Doctors there have been caring for S.G.V. for the past year, also monitoring the TPN treatment she receives. "Now, with the help my daughter receives in the United States, my daughter has the opportunity to leave the hospital, see the world, and live like a child her age," Vargas said. S.G.V. was at the news conference with her TPN backpack. She spent most of the time playing cards and making some arts and crafts to show how the treatment has helped improve her quality of life. According to the family's legal team, the family's humanitarian parole was set to expire at the end of July and Vargas was fighting to get it extended. But last month, the family received a notice via email from the Department of Homeland Security terminating their parole and work authorization. "If you do not depart the United States immediately you will be subject to potential law enforcement actions that will result in your removal from the United States — unless you have otherwise obtained a lawful basis to remain here," the notice, which was obtained by NBC News, reads. 'Clearly they did not give individualized consideration to this case, because had they done so,' Amato told NBC News, 'we believe that they would not have made this decision given the really poor condition of this child.' The notice also said, "DHS encourages you to leave immediately on your own," using the CBP Home mobile app, which has a self-deportation feature. The notice did not state a reason for revoking the family's parole other than DHS "exercising its discretion." According to attorneys at Public Counsel, the legal firm representing the family, no one in the family has any convictions. But the girl's father, who is not married to Vargas, has a pending charge stemming from "a misunderstanding at the San Diego hospital when he raised his voice" when discussing his daughter's care in an area "where he did not understand he could not be loud." Attorneys believe the charge will likely "be dismissed because he's complying with the anger management classes the courts requested of him," they said. "This does not influence the legality of Deysi's case." Believing the DHS notice was perhaps sent by mistake, attorneys for the family wrote a letter to federal immigration authorities on May 9. "They have not violated the terms of their parole," the letter, which was obtained by NBC News, reads. "We believe this notice was issued in error. Please correct this error." Still, the family continued receiving notices about their parole's termination, Amato said during the press conference. So, they filed a new application for humanitarian parole through the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The agency did not respond to a request for comment. A senior DHS official insisted to NBC News via email that reports about the family "actively being deported are FALSE. This family applied with USCIS for humanitarian parole on May 14, 2025, and the application is still being considered.' In the meantime, 'the family is very much in limbo, and they're terrified,' Amato said. 'They're no longer in status and they're no longer authorized to work in the U.S. So, they face many fears.'
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Trump has ordered a critically ill four-year-old Mexican girl to leave the country. She could die within days, experts say
A critically ill Mexican girl who could die within days if her treatment is paused has been ordered by the Trump administration to leave the U.S., according to her family and doctor. Deysi Vargas's 4-year-old daughter, named only as Sofia in a GoFundMe page, urgently required better medical care for a life-threatening condition and was granted temporary humanitarian permission to enter the U.S. from her home country of Mexico in 2023, The Los Angeles Times reports. Sofia has short bowel syndrome, a rare condition that stops her from absorbing nutrients in food. When she was born in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, she had to be attached to feeding tubes 24 hours a day. Since moving to the U.S., her condition has significantly improved, but she still requires treatment every day. Now the Trump administration has ordered Sofia's deportation, leaving her at risk of death, an attorney representing the family said. 'This is a textbook example of medical need,' Rebecca Brown of the pro bono firm Public Counsel told the paper. 'This child will die and there's no sense for that to happen. It would just be a cruel sacrifice.' The family is currently living in Bakersfield, California, just over 100 miles north of Los Angeles. The threat to Sofia's life was confirmed by Dr. John Arsenault of the Children's Hospital Los Angeles, where she receives regular treatment every six weeks. Arsenault said in a letter seen by The Los Angeles Times that if there is an interruption to administering nutrition to her system, 'it could be fatal within a matter of days.' The doctor added that patients who receive the treatment, called Total Parenteral Nutrition, at home 'are not allowed to leave the country.' 'The infrastructure to provide TPN or provide immediate intervention if there is a problem with IV access depends on our program's utilization of U.S.-based healthcare resources and does not transfer across borders,' Arsenault explained in the letter. The Independent has contacted the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services for comment. Sofia was reportedly born one month premature and had to undergo six surgeries due to an intestinal blockage, as medics struggled to get the condition under control in Mexico. During one surgery, Vargas, 28, told the newspaper that doctors cut out too much, leaving Sofia with short bowels. One blood infection she suffered as a result nearly killed her. While she was being kept alive in Mexico, her condition was no better by the age of two and Vargas knew the family would have to move to get her better care. Vargas signed up to the Biden administration's CBP One app to book an appointment with border agents in Tijuana to receive two-year protection from deportation. The app is now used by the Trump administration to notify migrants to self-deport or face the consequences. At the appointment on July 31, 2023, agents could tell that Sofia was seriously unwell just by taking one look at her. 'God knew she needed better treatment,' Vargas told The Los Angeles Times. 'When we got to the entrance, they saw her and asked us if we needed medical help.' That same day, the family was taken to Rady Children's Hospital-San Diego and her condition improved quickly. A year later, Sofia was referred to the Children's Hospital Los Angeles, which has one of the highest-ranked programs for gastroenterology in the U.S. Under their care, by September 2024, Sofia was discharged and could receive treatment in the comfort of her home. Meanwhile, her parents were working hard to hold down odd jobs in Bakersfield. 'It was incredible,' Vargas, who found a steady job as a cleaner at a restaurant, told the outlet. 'I had waited so long for doctors to tell me, 'Ma'am, your daughter is OK now. She can go home.'' Sofia's care is still gruelling. She must still spend 14 hours a night hooked up to the intravenous feeding system and Vargas also has to administer different medication that goes into her stomach through a gastric tube four times a day. At preschool, a school nurse has to administer nutrition daily. As things were beginning to look up, the notice from immigration arrived, swiftly followed by a notice terminating her employment authorization. Their attorney believes the family's legal status was terminated by mistake and has submitted a petition for a continuation of temporary humanitarian legal status because of Sofia's medical condition. 'This is the intended purpose — to help the most vulnerable who need attention here,' Brown said. 'We can avoid having harmed the child and the family.' Vargas added that they only intend to stay for as long as Sofia requires treatment, which is unclear.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Trump's Deportation Efforts Are About to Kill a 4-Year-Old
Donald Trump's administration may have condemned a 4-year-old girl with a rare bowel condition to death by terminating her legal status as part of the president's crackdown on immigration, the Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday. The young girl, who was identified by her initials S.G.V. by the Times, and her family were granted humanitarian permission to enter the U.S. legally from Mexico in 2023, so that she could receive treatment for short bowel syndrome, which prevents her from absorbing enough nutrients to remain healthy. Deysi Vargas, 28, was committed to getting her daughter better treatment than they had received in Mexico City, where her daughter had been kept alive but inadequate care prevented her condition from improving. An appointment in Tijuana they'd made through the CBP One app was their best hope. 'God knew she needed better treatment,' Vargas told the Times. 'When we got to the entrance, they saw her and asked us if we needed medical help.' But last month, the family received a notice telling them to leave the country—threatening the child's access to the care she needs to live. In a letter requested by the family, Dr. John Asenault, who treats S.G.V. every six weeks at Children's Hospital Los Angeles, said that any interruption in her daily nutrition regimen could prove 'fatal within a matter of days.' Arsenault said that patients such as S.G.V., who use an IV-administered nutrition system at home called Total Parenteral Nutrition, are typically not permitted to leave the country at all. S.G.V.'s treatment is incredibly complex. She must be hooked up to an intravenous feeding system for 14 hours a night, and must be administered additional nutrition for an hour, four times a day. The family's attorney, Rebecca Brown, of the pro bono legal firm Public Counsel, said that she believed the family's status had been revoked by mistake. 'This is a textbook example of medical need,' Brown told the Times. 'This child will die and there's no sense for that to happen. It would just be a cruel sacrifice.' A spokesperson for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services declined the Times' request for comment. In April, the Trump administration deported a mother to Honduras, alongside her 7-year-old daughter and 4-year-old son, the latter of whom had been diagnosed with cancer. The Trump administration claimed that the mother had requested her children be removed from the country with her, despite her attorney's insistence that she wished for her children, both citizens, to remain in the U.S. Trump's immigration crackdown has already proved deadly: At least seven immigrants in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody died in the president's first 100 days in office.
Newsweek
4 days ago
- Health
- Newsweek
Critically Ill Girl Facing Deportation Could Die Within Days If Care Halted
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A critically ill 4-year-old Mexican girl facing possible deportation could die if she is removed from the United States. Deysi Vargas' daughter, identified by her initials, S.G.V., has short bowel syndrome, a rare and serious condition that impairs the body's ability to absorb nutrients from food. The family wrote in a post on GoFundMe that without treatment, their daughter will die. Why It Matters The girl entered the U.S. legally on humanitarian grounds in 2023 to receive treatment. Her doctors said that continuous care is essential for her survival. This month, the family received a notice from federal immigration authorities revoking their legal status and ordering them to leave the country. "It is in your best interest to avoid deportation and leave the United States of your own accord," the letter read. Newsweek has contacted the family via GoFundMe and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services via email for comment. Children playing on the beach near the border wall between Mexico and the United States. Children playing on the beach near the border wall between Mexico and the United States. Aimee Melo/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images What To Know Deysi Vargas, 28, from Oaxaca, Mexico, and her husband, 34, from Colombia, met while working in Cancun and later moved to Playa del Carmen, where he drove for Uber. Their daughter, S.G.V., was born prematurely and soon diagnosed with short bowel syndrome, a rare condition requiring intensive medical care. She underwent multiple surgeries and suffered repeated infections, one of which was nearly fatal. By 2023, with little progress and growing concern for her daughter's future, Vargas applied for legal entry into the U.S. through the CBP One app. The family traveled to Tijuana, Mexico, where border officials granted them humanitarian parole. S.G.V. arrived still connected to her IV nutrition system. As a result of her illness, the child spent much of her early life hospitalized in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, dependent on feeding tubes around the clock. Her condition caused developmental delays, including a one-year setback in her growth. Dr. John Arsenault of the Children's Hospital Los Angeles told the Los Angeles Times that he sees the girl every six weeks. He said that any interruption to her daily nutrition regimen, known as Total Parenteral Nutrition (TPN), could be life-threatening within days. "As such, patients on home TPN are not allowed to leave the country because the infrastructure to provide TPN or provide immediate intervention if there is a problem with IV access depends on our program's utilization of U.S.-based health care resources and does not transfer across borders," Arsenault said. President Donald Trump said during his campaign that immigration enforcement would prioritize people with criminal records. However, his administration has taken broader steps to roll back legal protections. In recent months, humanitarian parole and other temporary legal statuses granted under earlier policies have been subject to review or revocation. Thousands of people who entered the United States through programs such as the CBP One app—many without criminal histories—have received notices instructing them to leave voluntarily or face legal consequences. What People Are Saying Deysi Vargas, in a post on GoFundMe: "Due to unexpected changes in our circumstances, we're navigating an urgent situation that could impact Sofia's continued medical treatment at Children's Hospital Los Angeles. Any support during this uncertain and difficult time would mean the world to us and help us stay focused on her care." Family attorney Rebecca Brown told the Los Angeles Times: "This child will die and there's no sense for that to happen. It would just be a cruel sacrifice." What Happens Next The family could be forced to return to Mexico unless the Trump administration restores their legal status.
