John Muir officials would not comment on the incident, citing privacy laws. But in an email, Ben Drew, a spokesperson for the hospital, said general policy is that \u201cIf a law enforcement agency indicates that visitation presents a safety or security concern, [the hospital] may limit or deny visitation to protect our patients, staff, and visitors.\u201d<\/p>\n
Saidi said that when the wife insisted on getting information about the man\u2019s condition, hospital security called the police.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe understand that emotions are high whenever a family member or friend is in the emergency department or hospital,\u201d said Drew. \u201cThe hospital only involves local police in circumstances when a patient or visitor\u2019s behavior becomes abusive, disruptive, or threatening, and cannot be resolved through our own security team.\u201d<\/p>\n
Saidi denied that the family was being disruptive, saying that conversations with hospital staff and administration were respectful and no voices were raised.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe atmosphere in that emergency bay was something like I\u2019ve never seen before in my career,\u201d Saidi said. \u201cThere was a chilling effect. Everyone was averting their eyes. You could tell the staff felt bad.\u201d<\/p>\n
Multiple emergency department nurses told Mobeen, a local California Nurses Association leader at John Muir, that ICE officers were \u201cvery aggressive with staff\u201d and staff were afterwards \u201cemotionally and physically upset\u201d by what happened, she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s horrifying to not be able to tell patients\u2019 family members how they are, what their status is,\u201d Mobeen said.<\/p>\n
Part of the issue, Mobeen added, is training. Staff were not given adequate training on how to respond to any kind of immigration enforcement action that may occur at the hospital, she said.<\/p>\n
Drew, the spokesman for John Muir, countered that the hospital has given guidance on its longstanding law enforcement policy and answered multiple questions since January about what to do if ICE agents show up at their facilities.<\/p>\n
Limits for ICE access, sometimes murky<\/strong><\/h2>\nLast month, immigration agents occupied the lobby of Dignity Health\u2019s Glendale Memorial Hospital, even standing behind reception desks, as photos that circulated online showed.<\/a> Protestors gathered outside the hospital, hosting rallies and press conferences.<\/p>\nThey were all there because agents had previously brought in Milagro Solis-Portillo<\/a>, an immigrant from El Salvador, for medical care following her detention. They spent 15 days in the hospital waiting for Solis-Portillo\u2019s discharge before transferring her to another hospital and then taking her into custody, according to local news reports<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cdn.kqed.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2025\/08\/HealthCareICECalMatters2.jpg\")
People stand on the stairs at an entrance of Dignity Health-Glendale Memorial Hospital in Glendale, on July 17, 2025. Activists have condemned the ongoing presence of ICE agents or contractors in the hospital lobby where a woman was recovering from a medical emergency while detained. (Robyn Beck\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/cite><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nIn a statement<\/a>, officials from Dignity Memorial Hospital said they could not legally prohibit law enforcement from being in public areas.<\/p>\nThat\u2019s true, say legal experts: Waiting rooms and lobbies are considered public spaces in hospitals. But agents cannot move through hospitals without limits. Law enforcement officials are not allowed to search for people in exam rooms or other private spaces without a federal court warrant.<\/p>\n
When agents bring in someone who is in their custody and needs medical care, the application of the law can be more murky.<\/p>\n
According to Richardson at the hospital association, how far an agent can go into treatment areas with a detained patient may be decided on a case-by-case basis. In cases where a detained patient is struggling or resisting, that patient may need guarding, she explained.<\/p>\n
And if law enforcement officers do go inside exam rooms, they may hear medical information while on guard. But that isn\u2019t necessarily a privacy violation, according to federal rules. The HIPAA Privacy Rule, the law that sets privacy standards for medical information, has a provision<\/a> that allows for \u201cincidental disclosures\u201d of information as long as \u201creasonable safeguards\u201d are applied.<\/p>\n\u201cThe hospital will, and the doctor will make reasonable attempts to protect the patient\u2019s privacy.\u201d \u201cWhat is reasonable is going to depend, again, on what\u2019s wrong with the patient, how the patient is behaving, the nature of the circumstances,\u201d Richardson said.<\/p>\n
HIPAA protects the disclosure of medical records, which include names, addresses and social security numbers along with health conditions. State law also requires health facilities to protect this information. According to guidance from the attorney general\u2019s office<\/a>, health facilities should consider a patient\u2019s immigration status confidential.<\/p>\nAt the same time, some disclosures are required if law enforcement can prove lawful custody or show an appropriate warrant. A federal court warrant signed by a judge grants law enforcement immediate access to information or to search a particular area, while an ICE administrative warrant does not require immediate compliance.<\/p>\n
Health workers in \u2018precarious\u2019 situations\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\nHealth facilities generally direct frontline workers not to engage with immigration agents, but rather to immediately contact security or management.<\/p>\n
One particular incident at a Southern California surgery center stands out, in conversation with health workers.<\/p>\n
On July 8, federal agents targeted three landscapers who had parked outside of the Ontario Advanced Surgical Center. They chased one of the men inside on foot, according to a felony criminal complaint filed against two health care workers in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.<\/p>\n
They were all there because agents had previously brought in Milagro Solis-Portillo<\/a>, an immigrant from El Salvador, for medical care following her detention. They spent 15 days in the hospital waiting for Solis-Portillo\u2019s discharge before transferring her to another hospital and then taking her into custody, according to local news reports<\/a>.<\/p>\n In a statement<\/a>, officials from Dignity Memorial Hospital said they could not legally prohibit law enforcement from being in public areas.<\/p>\n That\u2019s true, say legal experts: Waiting rooms and lobbies are considered public spaces in hospitals. But agents cannot move through hospitals without limits. Law enforcement officials are not allowed to search for people in exam rooms or other private spaces without a federal court warrant.<\/p>\n When agents bring in someone who is in their custody and needs medical care, the application of the law can be more murky.<\/p>\n According to Richardson at the hospital association, how far an agent can go into treatment areas with a detained patient may be decided on a case-by-case basis. In cases where a detained patient is struggling or resisting, that patient may need guarding, she explained.<\/p>\n And if law enforcement officers do go inside exam rooms, they may hear medical information while on guard. But that isn\u2019t necessarily a privacy violation, according to federal rules. The HIPAA Privacy Rule, the law that sets privacy standards for medical information, has a provision<\/a> that allows for \u201cincidental disclosures\u201d of information as long as \u201creasonable safeguards\u201d are applied.<\/p>\n \u201cThe hospital will, and the doctor will make reasonable attempts to protect the patient\u2019s privacy.\u201d \u201cWhat is reasonable is going to depend, again, on what\u2019s wrong with the patient, how the patient is behaving, the nature of the circumstances,\u201d Richardson said.<\/p>\n HIPAA protects the disclosure of medical records, which include names, addresses and social security numbers along with health conditions. State law also requires health facilities to protect this information. According to guidance from the attorney general\u2019s office<\/a>, health facilities should consider a patient\u2019s immigration status confidential.<\/p>\n At the same time, some disclosures are required if law enforcement can prove lawful custody or show an appropriate warrant. A federal court warrant signed by a judge grants law enforcement immediate access to information or to search a particular area, while an ICE administrative warrant does not require immediate compliance.<\/p>\n Health facilities generally direct frontline workers not to engage with immigration agents, but rather to immediately contact security or management.<\/p>\n One particular incident at a Southern California surgery center stands out, in conversation with health workers.<\/p>\n On July 8, federal agents targeted three landscapers who had parked outside of the Ontario Advanced Surgical Center. They chased one of the men inside on foot, according to a felony criminal complaint filed against two health care workers in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.<\/p>\nHealth workers in \u2018precarious\u2019 situations\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n