Girl, 4, allowed to stay in U.S. for lifesaving care after deportation controversy
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Diverging Reports Breakdown
Bakersfield girl who faced deportation and loss of lifesaving medical care is allowed to stay in U.S.
The family of a 4-year-old Bakersfield girl with a rare medical condition has been granted humanitarian protection from deportation. The plight of the girl, whom The Times has identified by her initials, S.G.V., drew public outrage and galvanized dozens of lawmakers to advocate on her behalf. The girl and her parents, who are from Mexico, originally received temporary permission to enter the U.S. legally through Tijuana in 2023. Her doctor at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles said she could die within days of losing her medical care for short bowel syndrome, a condition that prevents her body from completely absorbing nutrients from food. The Trump administration has stripped humanitarian protections from hundreds of thousands of immigrants who entered the United States under various Biden-era programs. Many have similarly been ordered to leave or face criminal prosecution and other legal actions, and many have been condemned by congressional Democrats.
The family of a 4-year-old Bakersfield girl with a rare medical condition has been granted humanitarian protection from deportation, allowing her to continue receiving lifesaving treatment in the United States.
The plight of the girl, whom The Times has identified by her initials, S.G.V., drew public outrage and galvanized dozens of lawmakers to advocate on her behalf. The girl and her parents, who are from Mexico, originally received temporary permission to enter the U.S. legally through Tijuana in 2023.
The Trump administration had rescinded the legal protections of S.G.V. and her parents, leaving them vulnerable to deportation. Her doctor at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles said she could die within days of losing her medical care for short bowel syndrome, a condition that prevents her body from completely absorbing nutrients from food.
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In a statement, lawyers representing the girl wrote that on May 28 — after significant news coverage — U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services contacted them to discuss processing her application for humanitarian parole. She and her mother, Deysi Vargas, attended a biometrics appointment in Bakersfield on Friday.
“By moving quickly, the agency has ensured that a four‑year‑old girl can continue receiving the specialized medical treatment that keeps her alive,” said Rebecca Brown of the nonprofit Public Counsel. “However, many families still face harm under the sweeping policy to do away with humanitarian parole. We ask the government to ensure that no one be put in harm’s way.”
Last week, 38 congressional Democrats, including California Sens. Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff, condemned the termination of the family’s status and urged the Department of Homeland Security to reinstate it.
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“Without action, S.G.V. will die,” the lawmakers wrote May 29 to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. “We urge a prompt response from your Department and a swift decision to extend this family’s legal status in the U.S.” The lawmakers wrote that the family’s situation “clearly meets the need for humanitarian aid.”
In a letter Monday to the family and their attorney, acting field office director Carmen Paniagua of Citizenship and Immigration Services wrote that “effective June 2, 2025, you have been granted Humanitarian Parole for a period of one year.”
In April, Vargas received notice from the federal government that their humanitarian protections and permission to work legally had been terminated. The notice told them to leave voluntarily or else “the federal government will find you.”
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An online fundraiser for S.G.V.’s care amassed more than $40,000 as of Tuesday.
The Trump administration has stripped humanitarian protections from hundreds of thousands of immigrants who entered the U.S. under various Biden-era programs. Many have similarly been ordered to leave or face criminal prosecution and other legal actions.
Brown, the attorney, said that when the family’s parole was terminated, there was no way to alert the immigration agency that a child’s life was in danger.
“It took an international outcry and pressure from elected officials to get a response — something that used to take a single phone call,” Brown wrote in the statement with Public Counsel directing attorney Gina Amato Lough. They urged the agency to reopen communication lines to ensure that every family facing imminent harm receives the prompt consideration that S.G.V. and her parents received.
Lawmakers including Padilla and Rep. Luz Rivas (D-North Hollywood), who led her Democratic colleagues in writing the letter to Noem, said they were glad that Citizenship and Immigration Services had granted the family another year of parole.
But Rivas said the girl should never have been placed in a life-or-death situation to begin with.
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“This situation is a prime example of the Trump administration being unfit, unprepared and unqualified to handle immigration policy decisions with empathy and compassion,” Rivas said.
Bakersfield family’s deportation order puts girl’s life-saving medication at risk
A family in Bakersfield is facing deportation, despite entering the country legally to obtain care for their young daughter. California lawmakers led by Sens. Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla have requested the Department of Homeland Security to extend the family’s legal status. The legislators sent a letter to DHS Sec. Kristi Noem on Thursday. The 4-year-old girl could die if she left the U.S. because she suffers from short-bowel syndrome.
Original story below:
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – A family in Bakersfield is facing deportation, despite entering the country legally to obtain care for their young daughter.
Lawyers said at a press conference on Wednesday that the 4-year-old girl could die if she left the U.S. because she suffers from short-bowel syndrome.
The disease requires her to wear an adult-sized backpack that delivers nutrients intravenously – 14 hours a day. This life-saving treatment is only available in the U.S.
The girl’s mother, Deysi Vargas, said deportation would jeopardize her daughter’s life
“If we return back to our county, she would be at the hospital day and night,” Vargas said through an interpreter.
Vargas legally entered the U.S. through humanitarian parole. That was under the Biden administration. But as the Trump administration cracks down on migrants, her parole was revoked.
Gina Amato, an attorney with Public Counsel based in Los Angeles, is representing Vargas.
“This case is heartbreaking … but it’s not unique,” she said. “For so many people fleeing violence, persecution or who are dealing with life-threatening illnesses, deportation is a death sentence.”
She says the main goal is to keep Vargas and her daughter in the U.S.
The Trump administration has been pushing to dismantle policies from the Biden administration that allowed for people to live legally in the U.S., generally for two years.
Humanitarian parole, which doesn’t put migrants on a path to U.S. citizenship, was widely used during the Biden administration to alleviate pressure on the U.S.-Mexico southern border.
It was previously used on a case-by-case basis to address individual emergencies and also for people fleeing humanitarian crises around the world including Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos during the late 1970s.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Trump Administration Reverses Deportation of Ill Mexican Girl
Trump Administration Reverses Deportation of Ill Mexican Girl. A critically ill 4-year-old Mexican girl has been granted a one-year humanitarian parole to stay in the U.S. for life-saving medical care. The Trump administration initially sought to revoke her status, triggering public and political backlash. Advocates say her case reveals deep issues in immigration procedures. The girl, who suffers from short bowel syndrome, requires specialized treatment that is not available in Mexico, according to her medical team and legal advocates. She receives 14 hours of daily IV nutrition, unavailable in Mexico. She’s treated at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and now lives in Bakersfield, CA. She was brought by her mother, Deysi Vargas, to the US-Mexico border in 2023 in search of urgent medical care, she was taken directly to a hospital. The decision sparked an outcry from immigration advocates, healthcare professionals, and elected officials. The family was stunned to receive notice from the Department of Homeland Security that their humanitarian parole was being revoked without warning.
A 4-year-old girl with short bowel syndrome arrives with her mother at a news conference in Los Angeles, Wednesday, May 28, 2025, after their humanitarian parole was terminated and they were ordered to self-deport. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Quick Looks
A 4-year-old girl with short bowel syndrome faced deportation despite urgent medical needs.
Her humanitarian parole was abruptly revoked under Trump’s new immigration rollback efforts.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security reinstated her parole for one year following pressure.
The girl receives 14 hours of daily IV nutrition, unavailable in Mexico.
She’s treated at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and now lives in Bakersfield, CA.
Advocates say her deportation would have amounted to a death sentence.
Trump officials are dismantling Biden-era humanitarian parole policies.
The girl’s attorneys from Public Counsel say communication with DHS was lacking.
Public outrage and elected officials helped reverse the deportation decision.
Humanitarian parole does not offer a path to citizenship but allows temporary legal stay.
Deep Look
In a case that has come to symbolize the human toll of shifting U.S. immigration policies, a 4-year-old Mexican girl facing a life-threatening medical condition will be allowed to remain in the United States for at least one more year, following a dramatic reversal by the Trump administration. The girl, who suffers from short bowel syndrome, requires specialized treatment that is not available in Mexico, according to her medical team and legal advocates.
Earlier this spring, the family was stunned to receive notice from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that their humanitarian parole—the legal mechanism allowing them to stay in the U.S.—was being revoked without warning. The decision, part of the Trump administration’s broader effort to dismantle humanitarian protections established under President Joe Biden, sparked an outcry from immigration advocates, healthcare professionals, and elected officials.
Their response appears to have worked. Attorneys for the family confirmed this week that DHS has now issued a one-year extension of humanitarian parole for the girl and her mother, a decision that may have saved the child’s life—at least for now.
A Child Caught Between Borders and Bureaucracy
The girl, referred to by her attorneys under the pseudonym “Sofia” to protect her identity, was brought by her mother, Deysi Vargas, to the U.S.-Mexico border in 2023 in search of urgent medical care. Upon arrival, she was taken directly to a hospital. Diagnosed with short bowel syndrome—a rare and severe digestive disorder—Sofia cannot absorb nutrients naturally and requires 14 hours of daily intravenous nutrition, administered through a special backpack.
Without this treatment, which is highly specialized and extremely limited in availability, doctors say Sofia would not survive. In Mexico, she had been confined to a hospital with inadequate resources. In the U.S., after being accepted into a program at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, she can now live with her family in Bakersfield, California, and has gained the ability to enjoy normal childhood activities such as visiting parks and stores.
Trump Reverses Biden-Era Policy
Humanitarian parole, the legal provision allowing Sofia and her mother to remain in the U.S., is not a path to permanent residency or citizenship. Instead, it’s a temporary form of relief historically granted in exceptional cases of humanitarian crisis, including war, persecution, or urgent medical need.
During the Biden administration, the use of humanitarian parole was expanded significantly, particularly to alleviate pressure at the U.S.-Mexico border by granting migrants temporary legal status under structured programs. That included thousands of people fleeing conditions in Afghanistan, Ukraine, Cuba, Haiti, and Venezuela.
The Trump administration, since returning to office in 2025, has prioritized reversing that trend. Officials have begun systematically rolling back humanitarian parole programs, arguing that they have been misused as a backdoor to illegal immigration. In doing so, they have stripped temporary protections from families like Sofia’s—often without warning or clear recourse.
In Sofia’s case, her family received two separate notifications in April and May 2025 stating that their parole had been terminated and that they would be subject to potential deportation. No specific explanation or alternative was provided. The sudden reversal left the family scrambling and advocates fearing for the girl’s life.
“This wasn’t just a paperwork error,” said Rebecca Brown, an attorney with Public Counsel, a legal nonprofit representing the family. “This was a child with a complex medical condition who would have died if deported.”
Public Pressure Forces Policy Shift
After learning of the DHS action, Public Counsel quickly mobilized a legal and public campaign to protect the child. Advocacy groups shared her story widely under the pseudonym “Sofia,” and elected officials reportedly intervened directly with the Biden-era DHS contacts still in government.
The resulting public pressure campaign, combined with media coverage and mounting criticism from both the healthcare community and immigrant rights activists, eventually led DHS to issue a formal reversal. According to a letter shared with Public Counsel, the agency granted a one-year extension of humanitarian parole, allowing Sofia to continue her treatment uninterrupted.
Yet attorneys and advocates say the case should serve as a warning, not a victory lap.
“It should not take national media coverage and pressure from Congress to get an agency to do the right thing,” said Brown. “The system is broken.”
The group said that systemic failings in the immigration system must be addressed to prevent other families from enduring similar uncertainty and trauma.
The Larger Context: Policy, Medicine, and Morality
Sofia’s case underscores the increasingly complex intersection of immigration law and healthcare ethics. U.S. law does not currently guarantee residency—even temporary—for foreign nationals needing medical care, unless granted through exceptions like humanitarian parole. As a result, patients with rare conditions may be denied treatment simply due to their immigration status, even if their lives depend on it.
Medical providers at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and other pediatric care centers have long advocated for more robust protections for medically fragile immigrant children. Pediatricians warn that removing children from critical care environments can result in rapid deterioration, organ failure, or death.
In addition to her daily IV treatment, Sofia receives nutrition counseling, regular testing, and home care services—none of which are reliably available in her home region in Mexico. Though her condition may improve in the coming years, doctors confirm that removing care prematurely could have irreversible consequences.
Looking Ahead
Sofia’s family remains in legal limbo. While grateful for the temporary relief, they face ongoing uncertainty. If no further action is taken, their parole could expire in 2026, once again leaving them vulnerable to deportation. Advocates are calling for the reinstatement of broader parole protections for medically at-risk migrants, and for clearer inter-agency communication between DHS, medical institutions, and legal counsel.
For now, Sofia remains safe in California, where she continues to play, grow, and receive the care she needs. But her case remains a stark reminder that behind policy decisions are real human lives, and that the cost of bureaucracy, delay, or indifference can be counted in years, tears—and sometimes lives.
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Deysi Vargas, her husband, and their daughter, identified by lawyers as Sofia, arrived in the US in 2023 to seek medical care for the young girl, who suffers from a rare condition requiring specialised treatment. In April, the federal government ended the family’s humanitarian parole and ordered them to “self-deport”
“This is to advise you that effective June 2, 2025, you have been granted humanitarian parole for a period of one year,” said a letter received on Monday, according to the Los Angles Times.
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Deysi Vargas, her husband, and their daughter, identified by lawyers as Sofia, arrived in the US in 2023 to seek medical care for the young girl, who suffers from a rare condition requiring specialised treatment.
In April, the federal government ended the family’s humanitarian parole and ordered them to “self-deport.”
Doctors warned that Sofia would likely die “within days” if forced to return to Mexico. Her family and legal team challenged the order, calling it unlawful and “a cruel betrayal of our nation’s values.”
The case sparked national outrage and drew strong support from Democratic lawmakers. Dozens of members of Congress, including California senators Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla, signed a letter urging the department of homeland security to reinstate the family’s legal status.
“We believe this family’s situation clearly meets the need for humanitarian aid and urge you and this Administration to reconsider its decision. It is our duty to protect the sick, vulnerable, and defenseless. Without action, SGV will die,” the lawmakers wrote.
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