Reporting from Houston -- As word spread Wednesday that the first U.S. death from the swine flu outbreak was of a Mexican toddler being treated in a Houston children's hospital, the baffling illness began bleeding over into the fevered national debate over illegal immigration.
Groups favoring a crackdown on illegal immigrants cited the death as proof of their long-standing contention that uncontrolled borders pose a public health danger to U.S. citizens. Conservative talk-radio hosts invoked scenarios directly blaming illegal border crossers from Mexico for introducing the illness into the United States.
And a Houston city councilwoman suggested that city officials were endangering the lives of local citizens by allowing foreigners to be treated in the city's hospitals.
"Who are we infecting by even bringing people into our hospitals?" asked Councilwoman Toni Lawrence. "Until we know more, we have to make some tough decisions. We need to look out for Houstonians first."
Local and federal health officials sought to tamp down the emerging anti-foreigner backlash. They noted that Texas Children's Hospital, where the boy had been under treatment since being airlifted from a hospital in the border city of Brownsville, Texas, on April 14, had taken the same precautions to isolate the child as it does with any patient suffering from a contagious disease.
The nearly 2-year-old boy, whom officials declined to identify, died Monday. His family had crossed the border to visit family members in Brownsville, where the toddler developed flu symptoms. The family's immigration status is unclear.
No other patients or medical personnel at the hospital have shown any signs of swine flu, officials said.
"Houston hospitals deal with infectious diseases every day. There's nothing special here," said Kathy Barton, spokeswoman for the city's health department, who said she had begun to hear Houston residents blaming Mexicans for the swine flu crisis.
"This case did not represent any threat to Houston," Barton added. "We hope our community will remain compassionate."
The mayor of Brownsville, Pat Ahumada, said he worried that a national panic over swine flu would "become one more excuse they are using to discriminate against Mexicans and call for closing the borders."
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