People seeking visas to live in the United States could be denied based on a greatly expanded list of health conditions, reports Amanda Seitz of KFF Health News.
A State Department directive instructs embassy and consular officers to reject applicants for the new conditions, which include obesity and diabetes. Also flagged: age and the likelihood a person may rely on public benefits.
Charles Wheeler, a senior attorney at the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, said the new directive contradicts the State Department’s own guidelines, which prohibit visa denials based on hypothetical concerns.
"That's troubling because [officers] are 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," Wheeler said.
Separately, organizations are still feeling the effects of earlier cuts in funding for immigrant children to access free legal counsel — even though most of the funding was restored, reports Alisa Reznick of KJZZ.
Welcome to Friday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Dan Gordon, the Forum’s VP of Strategic Communications, and the great Forum Daily team also includes Marcela Aguirre, Masooma Amin, Jillian Clark and Clara Villatoro. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected].
JUDGES’ ORDERS — Yesterday a federal judge extended restrictions regarding federal officers’ use of force in Chicago, Julie Bosman of The New York Times reports. A different federal judge on Wednesday ordered a federal immigration detention facility in Broadview, Illinois, to meet 15 requirements after hearing testimony on poor detainee conditions, reports Mitch Smith of The New York Times.
DAYCARE ARREST — Neighbors, parents and elected officials have been speaking out since agents entered a Chicago daycare Wednesday and detained a teacher with children and parents present, Reema Saleh reports in Block Club Chicago. The Department of Homeland Security confirmed that the teacher, Diana Galeano, has a work permit and pending asylum application, reports Tara Molina of CBS Chicago. "It’s important to understand that day care centers and schools are precious spaces across our city," said Alderman Matt Martin, per Cindy Hernandez and Violet Miller of the Chicago Sun-Times.
‘DREAM COUNTRY’ — The U.S. reduction in refugee admissions causes widespread ripple effects, Hannah Beech of The New York Times reports. "The USA is my dream country," said Mohammed Faisal, a Myanmar native who has been waiting in a refugee camp for ethnic minorities in Thailand. "The USA is a country of immigrants who work hard, and I want to work hard." As Beech notes, the Trump administration’s fiscal year 2026 cap of 7,500 refugees is the lowest in the resettlement program’s history. Here again is our take.
CONSTRUCTION WOES — The construction industry is seeing the negative effects of increased immigration enforcement in its labor market as workers become increasingly anxious, reports Scott Neuman of NPR. A survey conducted over the summer by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) found that 92% of construction firms struggle to find workers, and 28% said they were affected by immigration enforcement.
P.S. After receiving threats over the summer, the immigrant owners of Annie’s Cafe in Bountiful, Utah, "are answering with kindness," reports Carmen Nesbitt of The Salt Lake Tribune: The cafe will be open on Thanksgiving Day, welcoming anyone in need of a meal.
