A group of Republican senators, led by Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), are sounding the alarm over a surge in tuberculosis cases across the United States, directly linking the trend to the ongoing border crisis. In a letter sent to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, the senators demand immediate action to address the public health threat they believe is fueled by lax border security.
The senators, who also include Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) and Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), are urging Mayorkas to reinstate Title 42, a Trump-era public health order that allowed for the rapid expulsion of migrants to prevent the spread of communicable diseases. The Biden administration lifted Title 42 last year, despite bipartisan opposition, leading to a dramatic increase in illegal border crossings.
“Due to your negligence and refusal to enforce our current laws, tuberculosis (TB) is rapidly spreading through the millions of unscreened illegal immigrants released into the interior of the United States, putting American lives and health at severe risk,” Lee wrote in the letter.
The senators highlight the concerning rise in tuberculosis cases, noting that the disease was on a downward trend for decades before the recent surge. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there were 9,615 tuberculosis cases reported in 2023, a significant 16% increase from 2022. They further point out that many nationalities frequently encountered by Border Patrol are from countries with much higher tuberculosis rates than the U.S.
“The Biden-Harris administration’s destruction of America’s southern border has resulted in violent crime, human trafficking, drug smuggling and now a surge in a disease that was declining for nearly three decades before they took power. Secretary Mayorkas must answer for his part in this failure,” Lee stated in a statement to Fox News Digital.
The letter goes on to criticize the Biden administration’s immigration policies, accusing them of encouraging illegal immigration without proper health screening or security checks. “Rather than requiring immigrants to apply for status prior to arriving at the border and undergo health screenings, your policies encourage immigrants to unlawfully enter the interior with no meaningful processing, screening, or security analysis,” the senators write.
The senators have called for a range of measures to address the situation, including closing the border, detaining and deporting “inadmissible” immigrants, reinstating the Trump-era “Remain in Mexico” policy, and, most importantly, bringing back Title 42. They also demand answers from Mayorkas about whether DHS recognizes the correlation between the influx of migrants and the rising tuberculosis rates, and what steps the department is taking to mitigate the spread of the disease.
The letter ends with a stark warning: “There can be no doubt that your administration’s failure to enforce the law is the cause for the dramatic and dangerous rise of TB in the U.S.”
This development adds another layer of complexity to the already contentious debate over immigration policy and border security. The rising tuberculosis cases highlight the potential public health risks associated with uncontrolled migration, raising further questions about the Biden administration’s approach to border management.
