Trump administration walks back decision to end protections for migrants who receive medical care

The Trump administration reportedly said on Monday that it is reconsidering putting an end to a policy that enables migrants to not be deported while they or their family members receive lifesaving medical treatment.

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) faced widespread backlash after it severed the “deferred action” program on Aug. 7 without notifying the public, The New York Times reported.

USCIS mailed letters to those who had applied for renewal — which immigrants must do every two years — that said it was no longer taking renewal requests and gave immigrants 33 days to leave the country or face being deported, according to The Associated Press, which first reported the policy change.

But on Monday, USCIS told the Times that deportation proceedings hadn’t started for anyone who had received a letter and that officials would “complete the caseload that was pending on August 7.”{mosads}

The statement did not clarify whether immigrants will receive extensions or what will happen to the program after the pending caseload is sorted through, according to the Times.

“Whether a very limited version of deferred action will continue forward at U.S.C.I.S. is still under review. More information will be forthcoming,” an administration official told the Times.

The agency receives about 1,000 deferred action requests annually, mostly due to family or medical reasons, but most are rejected.