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THE FORUM DAILY
President Trump’s plans for mass deportation have created a climate of heightened fear for undocumented workers – and farms, construction sites, nursing homes, and other businesses are starting to see the impact on their labor forces as workers stay home rather than risk deportation, report Rebecca Davis O’Brien and Miriam Jordan of the The New York Times.
"If immigrants are prevented from entering this work force or are forced to leave the country by restrictive immigration policies and rhetoric, we will face systems collapse and catastrophic consequences for millions of people who rely on these workers," said Kezia Scales, vice president at PHI, a national organization focused on long-term care.
Rachel Barber of USA Today analyzes how without immigrants, regardless of their legal status, the already high costs of caring for seniors, children, and people with disabilities could soar.
Another industry experiencing labor strain is medicine. Facing physician shortages –especially in rural communities – some states are removing barriers to licensure for doctors trained in other countries, reports Arielle Zionts of KFF Health News.
Until recently, every state required foreign-born physicians to repeat years of supervised residency training to obtain a full license. Nine states removed the requirement in 2023, though immigrants – who make up about 26% of the U.S. physician workforce – still face obstacles on the path to medical licensure.
Welcome to Tuesday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Clara Villatoro, the Forum’s assistant VP of strategic communications, and the great Forum Daily team also includes Jillian Clark, Soledad Gassó Parker, Dan Gordon, Broc Murphy and Becka Wall. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected].
HIGH CONTRIBUTION — A recent report shows that undocumented immigrants paid nearly $90 billion in taxes in 2023, reports Alex Fitzpatrick of Axios. In total, immigrants — both with legal status and undocumented — paid $652 billion in taxes that year. The number highlights the significant contributions of immigrants to the American economy, Fitzpatrick notes.
APP SHIFT — The Department of Homeland Security announced the "CBP Home" app, which will encourage self-deportation through a "submit intent to depart" option, reports Rebecca Beitsch of The Hill. The new app seems to replace the recently canceled CBP One app, which allowed migrants to make appointments at a port of entry to seek asylum, Beitsch notes. The new app comes amid mass deportation efforts and in wake of the administration’s decision to end different temporary status programs, leaving thousands of individuals without legal protections, reports Dan Gooding of Newsweek.
EXEMPTION – An Afghan family expected to be received in Wisconsin is in legal limbo in Pakistan after the refugee resettlement program was indefinitely paused. Now, their American sponsors are seeking support from their Republican senator to get an exemption, reports Sophie Carson of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "We need to take the next step as soon as possible," said Jane Porath, one of the eight sponsors. "It could mean the difference between life and death."
‘CAN’T GO BACK’ — In Panama, dozens of migrants who were deported from the U.S. and sent to temporary camps in the jungle were released over the weekend, report Egan Janetsky, Alma Solís, and Matías Delacroix of the Associated Press. Migrants must leave Panama in 30 days, and many have no place to go, the team notes. "We are refugees. We do not have money...I can’t go back to Afghanistan under any circumstances," said Hayatullah Omagh, an Afghan deportee.
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