A woman in Philadelphia who is comatose is at risk of being deported back to the Dominican Republic because of her undocumented status, according to a new story in The Seattle Times.

“Her husband and son have been taking turns watching over her, because they’re very concerned the hospital is going to move her without their consent,” said Adrianna Torres-Garcia, deputy director of the Free Migration Project, a Philadelphia-based advocacy group.

NYLPI’s 2012 joint study with Seton Hall University was cited in this story about other involuntary medical transfers of undocumented patients.

These types of private deportations are unregulated and ungoverned, most occurring “in the shadows,” concluded a joint study by the Seton Hall University School of Law’s Center for Social Justice and the Health Justice Program at New York Lawyers for the Public Interest.

Read more at The Seattle Times.

The 2012 joint report is available for download in English and Spanish.

Learn more about NYLPI’s UnDocuCare program here.