HOUSTON – Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo scolds Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s executive order that mandates all state hospitals to ask patients whether they are in the U.S. legally and track the cost of treating people without legal status.
The order went into effect on Friday, Nov. 1.
Critics fear the change could scare people away from hospitals in Texas, even though patients are not required to answer the questions to receive medical care. Texas hospitals have spent months preparing for the change and have sought to reassure patients that it won’t affect their level of care…