US border chief urges health funding as second child migrant dies

America’s border security head warned today that officials were overwhelmed by the “enormous flow” of families crossing from Mexico, appealing to Congress for health care funding after a second child died in custody.

US Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenan said the agency was unable to cope with the thousands of arrivals, as most facilities were built decades ago for men arriving alone.

“We need help from Congress. We need to budget for medical care and mental healthcare for children in our facilities,” McAleenan told CBS News.

The official said he expected almost 25,000 migrant children to be in US custody by the end of the year — a greater number than ever before.

“That’s an enormous flow, that’s very different from what we’ve seen before,” he said, adding that the onset of the flu season was taxing the ability of staff to properly care for every child.

Guatemala has called for an investigation into the eight-year-old boy’s death, which came just three weeks after a seven-year-old Guatemalan girl died in similar circumstances.

The boy was detained with his father at a crossing in El Paso, Texas on December 18 and had been transferred to a New Mexico medical center showing signs of sickness on Monday, the agency said.

Staff diagnosed him with a cold but later discovered a fever. He was discharged midday, with prescriptions for ibuprofen and the antibiotic amoxicillin.

The boy was later sent back to the hospital suffering from nausea and vomiting. He died shortly before midnight on December 24.

The CBP said it had not established an official cause of death but would “ensure an independent and thorough review of the circumstances.”

Late Tuesday McAleenan announced the agency was “conducting secondary medical checks upon all children in CBP care and custody” with particular focus on children under 10.

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