Tuesday, 28 July 2026, 5:23
A court-appointed medical monitor has issued a scathing report on the healthcare system at California's largest immigration detention center. The California City Detention Facility, operated by private prison company CoreCivic under contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), “lacks a reliable system to consistently provide adequate health care, placing individuals at serious risk of both immediate and long-term harm,” according to the report released Monday.
Dr. Muthusamy Anandkumar, a physician with extensive experience monitoring medical care in prisons and jails, evaluated the facility against eight essential criteria for a functional healthcare system. The detention center failed on every measure, including: adequate staffing, timely access to medical specialists, responsive emergency services, and timely administration of prescribed medications. The report found a recurring pattern of delayed identification of patient needs, missed assessments, inadequate treatment, and gaps in follow-up care.
One detainee, diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer after a five-month wait for a biopsy, told the monitor: “By the time I received my official diagnosis, the cancer had spread all over my body. If my ability to get cancer treatment is in the hands of this same staff, I'm scared I'll be left without the healthcare I need.” Another detainee described feeling treated as if they have no value. The report notes that the facility was originally intended to house individuals in good health, but instead received a large volume of patients with complex medical conditions, including cancer and psychiatric disorders.
The California City Detention Facility, located in the Mojave Desert in Kern County, holds an average of 1,654 individuals in immigration custody. The facility has been the subject of repeated complaints from detainees and advocacy groups. In November 2025, a class-action lawsuit filed by seven detainees alleged inhumane conditions, including inadequate food, water, and medical care. U.S. District Judge Maxine M. Chesney ordered the independent monitor in response, requiring ICE to provide “constitutionally adequate healthcare.”
Immigration detention is civil, not criminal, yet the death rate in ICE custody in 2025 was the highest since at least 2009 (excluding the COVID-19 peak). A previous investigation by the San Francisco Chronicle found that in at least 17 deaths since early 2025, medical care was delayed or missed that could have been life-saving. Meanwhile, federal oversight agencies that historically inspected ICE facilities have been gutted. This report is one of several legal challenges; a similar monitor was recently ordered at the Adelanto Processing Center in Southern California.
The monitor's report offers recommendations to address staffing, oversight, and quality assurance failures. Advocates, including Tess Borden of the Prison Law Office, say the findings confirm a “nightmarish” system but provide a path forward. ICE and CoreCivic have disputed the findings, with a former ICE spokesperson stating that standards “go above and beyond” those of U.S. prisons. The legal battle continues, with the next compliance deadline set for December 11, 2026. For detainees, the question remains whether reform will come in time.
