Bring them home.
Bring them home.
I met Dr. Cozzo and Dr. Jones on Instagram. Equally outraged by what was - and is - happening with DHS and children in immigration detention centers, we decided to use our voices to do something about it. Board-certified pediatricians and professors of pediatrics, we've witnessed firsthand how detention conditions can harm children’s physical and mental health, including increased risk of infectious disease, developmental disruption, and toxic stress. Together, we collaborated to write a letter addressed to the DHS, garnering thousands of signatures from medical professionals across the country advocating for the release of children in immigration detention. We are asking for accountability from DHS, medical guidance from the American Academy of Pediatrics and to immediately release all children in immigration detention.
Who We Are
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Dr. Anita K Patel
Dr. Anita K Patel is a double board-certified Pediatrician & Pediatric Critical Care Attending at Children’s National Medical Center. Most importantly, she is someone who’s dedicated to helping children thrive and supporting the parents who love them. She also serves as an Associate Professor of Pediatrics at George Washington University School of Medicine.
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Dr. Ashley Marie Cozzo
Dr. Ashley Marie Cozzo is a double board-certified neonatologist, pediatrician, and mother dedicated to improving the health and well-being of mothers and infants. Her work bridges newborn critical care with the long-term health of families, advancing equitable, family-centered support beyond hospital discharge. As an advocate for child health and equity, Dr. Cozzo uses her voice to demand policies that protect children, support families, and reduce disparities in maternal–infant care. She is recognized as a Connecticut Magazine Top Doctor and Castle Connolly Rising Star for her leadership.
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Dr. Lara Jones
Dr. Lara Jones is a double board certified Pediatric Critical Care physician, mother, and child-health advocate committed to protecting children through evidence-based medicine and bold public advocacy. Through @AskLaDoctora, she empowers families with trusted medical education and mobilizes healthcare professionals to speak up when children are at risk.
Be a part of the action
Social media has brought our community together in a powerful way (Dr. Cozzo, Dr. Jones and I literally met on Instagram), and now we’re using that momentum to raise awareness, demand accountability, and push for immediate action. Every share, every voice, every second matters. This is urgent, it’s ongoing, and it should never be normal. Join our fight. Text GO ESH to 50409 to automatically send a message to Congress and the Senate calling for these inhumane detention centers to be shut down.
ICE detention is no place for a child. Call. Share. Tell them Caleb needs immediate medical attention. CoreCivic: (877) 834-1550 Congress: (202) 224-3121
Deiver was so cruelly detained in ICE detention in Dilley. He is now released and can participate in his spelling bee.
Raw meat. Worms in beans. Vomiting blood. No drinking water. Instead, water for purchase.
Gael was once in ICE detention in Dilley and hadn't pooped in 9 days. Ms. Rachel the (@msrachelforlittles) has joined our fight and helped advocate for his release.
We are so grateful that @msrachelforlittles joined the fight one of the most influential women in the world, and the one person who will reliably advocate for children, no matter what the cost!
A child’s death in custody should never be normalized. This tragedy underscores what we are working toward: detention is not a safe place for children. We need accountability, transparency, and an immediate re-evaluation of policies that put young lives at risk
Our voices are helping to bring national attention and coverage to the atrocities happening to children in American detention centers.
Each Step Home has made it easy to stand up for children detained by ICE. You can text GO ESH to 50409 and they will deliver a message to your senators and congress member telling them to end the ICE detention of families.
Commercial airlines. Hotel rooms. Handlers in plain clothes. All among us. Happening in plain sight. Children unaccounted for beyond what the law allows. Moved to ICE detention centers.
Call your local senators and reps! (202)-224-3121. Public pressure really works and has led to recent releases of children and congressional hearings on this issue!
Text GO ESH to 50409 to automatically send a message to your congress member and senators calling for these inhumane detention centers to be shut down.
Continued National Coverage
3/16/26 - Yahoo News - The Pediatrician Moms Standing up For Children in Immigration Detention
3/2/26 - Red River Radio - Nearly 4,000 Health Professionals Urge Release of Children Held in ICE Detention
3/3/26 - Univision Dallas - Día de elecciones primarias en Texas
3/11/26 - Brazilian Times - Pediatras dos EUA pedem libertação imediata de crianças mantidas em centros de detenção de imigração
2/27/26 - Telemundo San Antonio - Revelan llamadas al 911 por niños con fiebre en centro familiar de Dilley
Médicos interceden por derechos de niños detenidos
How you can help
How you can help
After enduring months of detention and instability, these families are now trying to rebuild their lives with very little. They are working to secure safe housing, care for their children, and recover from the trauma they have experienced. Your support can help them meet urgent needs and begin again with dignity and hope.
What we are doing
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Calling for Immediate Release of Children
A formal letter has been sent to federal leadership urging the release of children from detention facilities. The letter outlines the medical risks and ethical violations of prolonged detention. You can also sign our petition calling for the closure of the Dilley ICE Detention Center.
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Funding Direct Relief
Through Each Step Home, funds go directly into commissary accounts for detained families, supplies for infants and children, emergency resettlement support and basic necessities for families released with nothing.
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Elevating Medical Evidence in Congress
Each Step Home has made it easy to stand up for children detained by ICE. You can text GO ESH to 50409 and they will deliver a message to your senators and members of congress telling them to end the ICE detention of families.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Dr. Patel, Dr. Jones and Dr. Cozzo connected as physicians watching children suffer in detention. All of us were watching the same reports, seeing the same images, hearing the same stories from the ground. Then came the urgent plea to release detained children. A two month old baby. Families with no access to basic pediatric standards. That was the moment everything changed. Since then Rachel Anne Accurso, known as "Ms. Rachel for Littles" has joined our fight (along with countless other celebrities), using her platform to amplify the urgent call to protect children and demand their immediate release from detention.
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Children, including infants, are being held in detention facilities without consistent access to evidence based pediatric care. We are pediatric physicians who came together after witnessing urgent reports of infants and young children in unsafe conditions. One case involving a two month old baby became a catalyst. It made clear that waiting was not an option. Within days, we organized a national effort that included a formal letter calling for the release of children from detention, direct financial support for detained and newly released families, coordination with reporters and congressional offices and ongoing medical advocacy for transparency and standards of care. Our mission is simple: children do not belong in detention, and no child should be subjected to substandard medical care.
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There are three powerful ways to help right now:
1. Contact Your Representatives
We provide a simple script you can use to call, text, or email your senators and representative. It takes just a few minutes and makes a real impact.2. Donate
Funds raised go directly to families through Each Step Home. Donations support commissary accounts, infant supplies, clothing, hygiene items, and emergency resettlement needs.3. Join Our Email List
Stay informed about policy updates, media coverage, and urgent action steps. When momentum builds, you’ll know exactly how to respond.Small actions, coordinated together, create pressure that moves policy.
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Children do not vote. They do not testify in committee hearings. They cannot advocate for themselves. When policies affect access to healthcare, detention conditions, Medicaid funding, or basic safety, pediatricians see the consequences firsthand. Health policy is child health policy. Physicians have both an ethical responsibility and a clinical obligation to speak when systems harm children. Advocacy is not separate from medicine. For children, it is part of the job.
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For media inquiries, please email Krista.Gugliotti@gmail.com (Krista Gugliotti, Director of Communications) and cadapequenocuenta@gmail.com.