Boston Medical Center has ended its policy to house migrants after more than 100 migrants showed up to the hospital seeking shelter last week, a hospital staff member told The Boston Globe.
The revised policy now states that emergency department employees are required to send migrants to shelters during business hours after being screened. However, if migrants arrive at the hospital after hours, workers are directed to send them via ride share to wherever they stayed the previous night, or at a different location where they would like to go. In some cases, that may mean sending migrants back to Logan Airport, where they had previously spent the night, hospital employees told The Boston Globe.
"BMC has notified the City and State that we will actively manage the number of unhoused individuals that can wait in the hospital," Boston Medical Center said in a written statement. "We are focusing BMC resources on individuals actively in need of medical care and their families."
It is unclear how migrants are being directed to Boston Medical Center, but the reported policy change is concerning to some hospital staff as well as migrant advocates.
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The hospital's revised policy comes as shelter space across Massachusetts grows scarce amid the rise in migrant arrivals and homeless families, which has prompted state and local officials to provide temporary housing in dormitories and hotel rooms.
Since Massachusetts is a right-to-shelter state, the government is obligated to provide care for homeless families, including migrants. However, the need for shelter is outpacing the resources that are available.
