Lawmakers consider health coverage for illegal immigrants' children, bed rail safety

Members of Congress spotlight the health risks associated with bed rails and demand that federal health care programs cover the children of illegal immigrants who are able to stay in the U.S. under the administration's deferred-action immigration policy.

CQ HealthBeat: Markey Highlights Gap In Oversight Of Lethal Bed Rail Risks
Federal officials will coordinate more closely to strengthen oversight of such products as hospital bed rails that blur the line between medical devices and consumer items, if Rep. Edward J. Markey has his way. The Massachusetts Democrat is calling on the Food and Drug Administration, the Federal Trade Commission and the Consumer Product Safety Commission to create a task force to better address risks associated with bed rails. Bed rails are commonly used in nursing homes, assisted living facilities and patients' homes to keep people from falling out of bed or to help them get up. A recent New York Times investigation linked bed rails to 550 deaths since 1995, including 27 in the last year alone (Reichard, 12/3).

The Hill: Dems: Federal Health Programs Should Cover DREAMers
Federal health care programs should cover the children of illegal immigrants, a group of House Democrats says. Democrats are asking the Obama administration to make health care available to children who are able to stay in the U.S. under the deferred-action immigration policy that President Obama announced earlier this year. The policy -- similar to the DREAM Act -- allows many children of illegal immigrants to remain in the U.S. without fear of deportation, as long as they meet certain criteria. A group of House Democrats, led by Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), is now pressing the Obama administration to open federal health care programs to children who receive deferred action under Obama's plan (Baker, 12/3).