Overweight people applying for visas to America will need to rethink their plans in future, as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has instructed diplomats to consider obesity as among the reasons to reject foreigners seeking visas to the country, reports POLITICO.
Rubio’s guidance is a relatively strict interpretation of the federal government’s “public charge” rule. That rule bars prospective immigrants from entering the country if they are deemed likely to later require public assistance, like Supplemental Security Income and funding from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families programme.
“Self-sufficiency has been a longstanding principle of US immigration policy, and the public charge ground of inadmissibility has been a part of our immigration law for more than 100 years,” his document states.
Adult obesity increases the risk of conditions including high blood pressure, breathing problems, gallstones and gall bladder disease, according to the notice, which cites the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, and states that “all of these can require expensive, long-term care”.
Visa officers are also instructed to screen for and consider cardiovascular diseases, cancers and diabetes.
White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said the guidance is an extension of the administration’s efforts to focus federal spending on US citizens.
“For 100 years, State Department policy has included an authority to deny visa applicants who would pose a financial burden to taxpayers, such as individuals seeking publicly-funded healthcare in the United States and who could further drain healthcare resources from American citizens.”
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