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For Immediate Release
November, 08 2018, 11:00pm EDT
Thursday November, 08 2018, 11:00pm EDT
Contact:
Jonathan Hutson,Chief Communications Officer,jhutson [at] phrusa [dot] org,Tel: (617) 301-4210,Cell: (857) 919-5130
PHR Condemns Trump's New Rule Prohibiting Valid Asylum Claims
The following statement is attributable to
WASHINGTON
WASHINGTON - The following statement is attributable to Physicians for Human Rights (PHR)Asylum Network Program Officer Kathryn Hampton:
"The new measures adopted today by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice, under the orders of President Trump, barring those entering the United States between ports of entry from applying for asylum, are a direct violation of Article 31(1) of the United Nations Refugee Convention, to which the United States is bound. All asylum seekers crossing an international border are entitled to apply for asylum, regardless of how or where they cross. People who have already suffered so much should not be further penalized by this ruling, which is a breach of the United States' legal obligations.
"The United States must not turn its back on long-standing humanitarian protections for people fleeing persecution and violence. We urge the Trump administration to uphold the right to seek asylum and to ensure the humane and rights-respecting processing of all asylum seekers entering the United States."
PHR was founded in 1986 on the idea that health professionals, with their specialized skills, ethical duties, and credible voices, are uniquely positioned to investigate the health consequences of human rights violations and work to stop them. PHR mobilizes health professionals to advance health, dignity, and justice and promotes the right to health for all.
LATEST NEWS
Nonpartisan Watchdog Agency Finds Trump Admin Illegally Withheld Head Start Funds
"The Trump administration broke the law and denied communities the funding they need to create jobs, grow their economies, and support working families," said one Democratic lawmaker.
Jul 23, 2025
The Trump administration has violated at least two federal laws by withholding close to $1 billion from Head Start, the program that provides preschool education to low-income families, a nonpartisan watchdog agency found on Wednesday.
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) determined that the U.S. Health and Human Services Department (HHS) illegally impounded crucial funds from Head Start between January 20 and April 15 of this year, when it distributed only 65% of the money it had provided to the early childhood education program over the same period in 2024.
Head Start lost more than $825 million over that time period, forcing some centers to close.
The GAO found that withholding the funds violated the Head Start Act and the Impoundment Control Act (ICA), which restricts the president's ability to rescind or delay funding that has already been appropriated by Congress.
"HHS has not provided the information we requested regarding factual information and its legal views concerning the potential impoundment of appropriated funds," said the GAO. "Yet publicly available evidence, including data recorded by HHS on its Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System, indicates that between January 20, 2025, and April 15, 2025, HHS withheld from disbursement funds appropriated for Head Start. Based on this evidence, we conclude that HHS violated the ICA."
The office added in its decision that "the Constitution grants the president no unilateral authority to withhold funds from obligation... If the administration wishes to make changes to the appropriation provided for Head Start, it must propose legislation for consideration by Congress."
Previously, the GAO has advised Congress that the Trump administration illegally withheld funds for an electric vehicle charging system and for the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
"Today's legal opinion from the nonpartisan GAO reaffirms a simple truth: The power of the purse belongs to Congress, not the president," said U.S. Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-Pa.), ranking member of the House Budget Committee. "By blocking these investments, the Trump administration broke the law and denied communities the funding they need to create jobs, grow their economies, and support working families."
"Instead of trying to destroy preschool programs and breaking our laws to hurt working families, President Trump needs to ensure every penny of these funds get out in a timely, consistent way moving forward."
The administration has proposed entirely eliminating Head Start, which provides education to more than 750,000 children. Earlier this month it announced that children who are undocumented immigrants will no longer be accepted into the program—prompting a lawsuit that was filed this week by 21 Democratic state attorneys general.
Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), who serves as vice chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, condemned President Donald Trump for "stealing money from preschool programs."
"No president in modern history has demonstrated such contempt for working and low-income American families as Donald Trump," said Murray, noting that a Head Start program in her state's Lower Yakima Valley was among those that had to temporarily close earlier this year, impacting more than 400 children and more than 70 staffers.
"Today, a top government watchdog confirmed what we've known for months: President Trump has illegally held up vast sums of funding for Head Start programs across America—blocking funding that working families count on every day for pre-K and so many critical services Head Start offers," said Murray.
"Trump has signaled he would like to eliminate Head Start—but that's not his choice to make," she added. "Congress delivered this funding for Head Start on a bipartisan basis, and instead of trying to destroy preschool programs and breaking our laws to hurt working families, President Trump needs to ensure every penny of these funds get out in a timely, consistent way moving forward—and he must also finally get out the rest of the investments he has been robbing the American people of."
Insurance Giant Chubb Breaks 2019 Coal Pledge: Report
"It's absurd for Chubb to continue to underwrite activities that are causing climate change and then turn around and pay for the claims and payouts caused by these activities," said one critic.
Jul 23, 2025
Chubb's 2019 decision to stop underwriting new coal projects or offering policies to businesses that generate more than 30% of their revenue or energy production from the fossil fuel was welcomed as a "major step forward" that could pressure other insurance giants to follow suit—but six years later, Wednesday reporting revealed that the company "has reversed its stance."
"It appears to have broken that pledge last week by reinsuring Nghi Son 2, a 1.2GW power plant on Vietnam's coast fueled entirely by coal," The Bureau of Investigative Journalism detailed. "Nghi Son 2 could emit up to 175 million metric tons of CO2 over 25 years—more than the annual emissions of the Philippines—according to Global Energy Monitor, which tracks energy data."
While Chubb CEO Evan Greenberg said six years ago that the company recognizes the reality of climate change and the substantial impact of human activity on our planet," neither the insurer nor Nghi Son 2 Power responded to the outlet's requests for comment.
Meanwhile, Giovanna Eichner, shareholder advocate at Green Century Capital Management, which holds shares in the insurer, said that "it's absurd for Chubb to continue to underwrite activities that are causing climate change and then turn around and pay for the claims and payouts caused by these activities."
In fact, the outlet highlighted, Chubb stopped covering wildfire-prone areas of California in 2021. Experts at the advocacy groups As You Sow and the Consumer Federation of America called out Chubb for contravening its coal policy—and doing so while ditching customers who need coverage in the face of extreme weather made worse by the continued use of fossil fuels.
Chubb, one of the world’s largest insurers, was one of the first to stop covering coal-projects, pledging to ‘do its part as a steward of Earth’But it has now become the lead reinsurer for a coal-fired power plant in Vietnam
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— The Bureau of Investigative Journalism (@tbij.bsky.social) July 23, 2025 at 7:07 AM
It's not immediately clear what Chubb's reported move in Vietnam will mean for other decisions. For example, as with the 2019 coal announcement, the insurer was praised by climate, environmental, and Indigenous rights defenders last year for abandoning a highly controversial methane gas project on the Texas Gulf Coast after facing months of grassroots community pressure.
Wednesday's reporting comes after a working paper published last month by a trio of researchers at the University of Zurich explained that insurers adopting restrictions on coal were accelerating the shift away from it.
Writing about the findings on Substack, longtime climate campaigner Peter Bosshard noted that "the Insure Our Future campaign has pressured the insurance industry to shift away from coal and other fossil fuels since 2017. We have seen a lot of anecdotal evidence that the restrictions which insurers adopted during this period have created bottlenecks for coal companies and made it impossible to build new coal power plants in much of the world."
"Through freedom of information requests, the Zurich researchers managed to access 9,745 insurance policies across 456 mines during the 2014-24 period, covering more than three-quarters of U.S. coal production," he continued. "Based on this data, they can for the first time offer hard evidence on the impact of insurers' coal restrictions."
While the paper identifies two exceptions to the overall trend—Lloyd's and Zurich—the researchers still concluded that insurers' policies can limit coal mining activity. Given that, Bosshard asserted that "insurance companies should use their clout to accelerate not just the shift away from coal, but also from oil and gas."
'He Had Power to Stop This': GOP's Hawley Warns of Looming Healthcare Disaster After Enabling It
"If we don't [extend the tax credits], the cost of insurance is just going to explode... for families, working people across the nation," said Sen. Josh Hawley during an event hosted by Axios.
Jul 23, 2025
Missouri Republican Sen. Josh Hawley on Wednesday took some flack from critics after he warned about big spikes in Americans' insurance premiums that he personally had the power to stop just weeks ago.
During an event hosted by Axios, Hawley was asked about potentially voting to extend some of the enhanced tax credits to help Americans pay the cost of their health insurance that were passed by Democrats during former President Joe Biden's term in office.
"If we don't [extend the tax credits], the cost of insurance is just going to explode... for families, working people across the nation," Hawley said. "I mean, already we're seeing premium increases with are just, which are unbelievable. We're looking at anything from 10% to 30% increases in the cost of health insurance."
"These subsidies allow folks to pay less than 10% of their income—which is still a lot, by the way—for health insurance," the senator added. "If we don't do something about that, we could see people paying double what they're paying now. I just don't know how you can afford it, I don't know how working people can afford it."
Q: Some of the ACA tax credits are set to expire at the end of the year. How important is it for Republicans to stop that from happening?
HAWLEY: Well, if we don't, the cost of insurance is just going to explode. Explode for families, working people. Already the premium… pic.twitter.com/wg5Z8cxDsH
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 23, 2025
Some critics were quick to point out that Hawley could have insisted on an extension of the Affordable Care Act tax credits—which are set to expire at the end of the year—as a necessary condition for voting in favor of the massive budget reconciliation package that barely passed the U.S. Senate and required Vice President J.D. Vance to serve as a tie-breaking vote.
During the run up to voting on the bill, Hawley complained about the roughly $1 trillion in cuts it contained to Medicaid over the span of a decade, but wound up voting for it regardless.
"Josh Hawley is exhibit #1 of what it means to have a cult leader in charge," wrote Democratic California State Sen. Scott Wiener on the social media platform X. "He voted to blow up Medicaid and ACA—after vocally saying he was opposed to doing so—and now he's complaining about it. He had power to stop this disaster. He chose not to because the leader insisted."
"If some aspect of a bill is going to devastate constituents financially, how can a responsible representative vote it it?" asked longtime New York Times media reporter Bill Carter. "Hawley wants to say: 'Look how hard I'm fighting for you, after I sold you out.'"
Paul Waldman, a columnist for MSNBC and The Daily Beast, mused about how poorly statements such as Hawley's would play in a future run for the presidency.
"Josh Hawley is rolling out his compelling 2028 persona, Guy Who Feels Your Pain Now That The Bills He Voted For Made Your Life Miserable," he wrote on social media platform Bluesky.
Missouri-based progressive activist Jess Piper explained that Hawley's decision to vote for the GOP budget bill was going to hurt her personally.
"He's my Senator," she said. "He's the reason I will lose my health insurance."
KFF and the Peterson Center on Healthcare last week released a study projecting that ACA marketplace premiums will go up so much if the tax credits aren't extended that millions of Americans will simply opt out of having health insurance.
"If Congress takes no action to renew these enhanced tax credits, enhanced subsidies will expire at the end of 2025, which will cause premium payments for subsidized enrollees to increase by over 75% starting in January 2026," the study stated. "Insurers expect a large share of enrollees to leave the market, and that those enrollees will be healthier on average, thus leaving the risk pool sicker on average."
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated earlier this week that more than four million people could lose health insurance over the next decade if lawmakers don’t extend the ACA tax credits.
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