Father testest positive for TB

[IAmNoLawyer 1]

Hi Folks,

I am a U.S. citizen and I petitioned (IR-5 visa) both my parents. Both my parents completed their medical exam at SLEC Manila a couple of years ago just right before COVID-19 and the lockdown in the Philippines. My mother passed her medical exam but my father did not because he tested positive for tuberculosis (TB). As a result he received a letter from the Embassy of the US in Manila.

On the letter it says this:

Quote

We are unable to issue you an immigrant visa because you have been found ineligible under the following Section(s) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), as amended.
[x] 212(a)(1)(A)(i)  ---  You have communicable disease of public health significance. (This is the only option marked for my father)

WAIVER: Waivers are not available for 212(a)(l)(A)(lv), 212(a)(2)(C), 212(a)(S)(A) or 221(g) Ineligibilities. You may apply for a waiver of
the other ineligibilities listed above. If you wish to apply for a waiver, use Form 1-601, Application for Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility
and/or Form 1-212, Application for Permission to Reapply for Admission Into the United States after Deportation or Removal. You must mall
your waiver application and supporting evidence directly to a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCJS) Lockbox: (for US Postal
Service - USCIS, P.O. Box 21600, Phoenix, AZ 85036); for Express mall or Courier deliveries - USCJS, Attn: 601/212 Foreign Fllers, 1820 E.
Skyharbor, Circles. Suite 100, Phoenix, AZ 85034. Filing Instructions are available at http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis.

We never applied for a waiver. My father completed his tuberculosis (TB) treatment with a doctor in Angeles City, Pampanga (not in SLEC Manila). We decided not to do the treatment at SLEC Manila because at the time COVID-19 was at its peak. He now has his TB treatment report (as proof he no longer has TB) which he can provide the panel physician during his medical examination (still to be scheduled at SLEC Manila as of 7/24/2022).

Here's where I am at with my parents:

• SLEC Manila Medical Exam - appointment to be scheduled for medical examination (no walk-ins available as of 7/24/22)
• Immigrant Visa Interview - appointment on 8/2/22

Here are my questions and I am really hoping to get some answers/opinions/suggestions:

• Did I the do right thing by not applying for a waiver but having my father complete his TB treatment instead?
  • If so, can I schedule his medical examination at SLEC Manila and have him provide his TB treatment report to the panel physician, in preparation for his immigrant visa interview on 8/2/2022?
  • Otherwise, what should have I done?

 

Source regarding positive TB skin test (https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/the-immigrant-visa-process/step-10-prepare-for-the-interview/medical-examination-faqs.html):

Quote

 

What if the applicant had a positive tuberculosis skin test?

Applicants with a previous positive skin test for tuberculosis should provide a certificate from the attending doctor (giving the circumstances of the positive test result, and indicating any treatment prescribed, and its duration) to the panel physician. If the applicant has ever been diagnosed with tuberculosis, the applicant must present a written certification, signed by the attending doctor, proving that the applicant was adequately treated. The certificate must include dates and types of medications taken. Applicants who ever had an abnormal chest X-ray should borrow the last X-ray films taken and bring them to the panel physician. The actual films, not the typed reports, may be required to compare with the X-rays that will be taken at the medical examination.

 

 

Thank you so much for any help you can provide.

Edited July 24, 2022 by IAmNoLawyer

[Crazy Cat 39,747]

1 hour ago, IAmNoLawyer said:

Did I the do right thing by not applying for a waiver but having my father complete his TB treatment instead?

Apply for a waiver?  There was no waiver available for this condition.  "Waivers are not available for 212(a)(l)(A)(lv)"  

Edited July 24, 2022 by Crazy Cat

[IAmNoLawyer 1]

6 minutes ago, Crazy Cat said:

Apply for a waiver?  There was no waiver available for this condition.  "Waivers are not available for 212(a)(l)(A)(lv)"  

I typed 212(a)(1)(A)(i) and it's what is exactly on the letter. Is 212(a)(1)(A)(i) the same as 212(a)(l)(A)(lv)? It's my understanding that they are not.

[Crazy Cat 39,747]

2 minutes ago, IAmNoLawyer said:

I typed 212(a)(1)(A)(i) and it's what is exactly on the letter. Is 212(a)(1)(A)(i) the same as 212(a)(l)(A)(lv)? It's my understanding that they are not.

I could have misread the wording.  However, I have never seen anyone get a waiver for active TB.   Hopefully, other members are more knowledgeable. 

[Unlockable 7,306]

I do not think a waiver can be given for a highly contagious airborne disease like TB. You say you have a treatment report but does your father have a negative TB test as a result of the treatment? Because he could have had the treatment but the treatment may not have cleared everything up. I'm assuming the medical appointment on 7-24 should show the results.

 

Also, sit back and think about your waiver argument for a second. There is a reason the US government does these medical tests. It is to prevent the risk of affecting the lives of other people. Asking for a waiver would be asking the government to excuse your father from this test. And if your father does still have TB, when he travels to the US by spending hours on a sealed plane, he would be exposing hundreds of people. 

 

 

I have never seen a waiver for a positive TB test, but who knows, maybe somewhere, some how there is one? It would absolutely flabbergast me if a positive TB test was eligible for a waiver. Especially during this Covid era.

 

I do remember a thread years ago of the same situation as the OP. A son was here asking for ways to bring his father from the Philippines but his father tested positive for TB. The posted explained that their family was extremely poor and his father lived in a province too far away for him to undergo the treatment. He sought to see if there was a work around for the TB but everyone explained to him how dangerous for his father to immigrate with such a highly infectious disease.

Edited July 25, 2022 by Unlockable

[Chancy 6,233]

On 7/24/2022 at 2:46 PM, IAmNoLawyer said:

Did I the do right thing by not applying for a waiver but having my father complete his TB treatment instead?

• If so, can I schedule his medical examination at SLEC Manila and have him provide his TB treatment report to the panel physician, in preparation for his immigrant visa interview on 8/2/2022?
• Otherwise, what should have I done?

 

The mistake was not having your father complete the TB treatment at SLEC Manila.  Although I understand why you decided to do so, the US embassy in Manila only accepts medical results and treatments done by SLEC.  No exceptions ever, that I know of so far.  The only way forward now is to schedule another SLEC medical and hope that USEM will allow your father to continue his visa processing.  Note that for repeat medicals, SLEC may require a health case number to be issued by USEM.  Assuming your father is able to schedule another medical, even if he has his TB treatment report from another clinic, he will still need to have chest x-ray taken again at SLEC and possibly undergo sputum testing again.

 

[IAmNoLawyer 1]

On 7/27/2022 at 8:13 AM, Chancy said:

 

The mistake was not having your father complete the TB treatment at SLEC Manila.  Although I understand why you decided to do so, the US embassy in Manila only accepts medical results and treatments done by SLEC.  No exceptions ever, that I know of so far.  The only way forward now is to schedule another SLEC medical and hope that USEM will allow your father to continue his visa processing.  Note that for repeat medicals, SLEC may require a health case number to be issued by USEM.  Assuming your father is able to schedule another medical, even if he has his TB treatment report from another clinic, he will still need to have chest x-ray taken again at SLEC and possibly undergo sputum testing again.

 

Thank you; I appreciate the information.