A mother whose daughter is suffering a rare form of cancer at an area hospital could be asked to leave early next month. Barbados resident Petrah Gooding brought her 7-year-old daughter Niamh Stoute to Atlanta in November to be treated for neuroblastoma at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta’s Aflac Cancer center.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement extended Niamh’s nine-month visitor’s visa to allow her to continue receiving treatment, but Gooding was told she would have to leave her daughter’s side on Sept. 2.
“I’m at a loss for why they would approve an extension for my daughter and not for the mother who is taking care of her,” Gooding told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution by phone Thursday evening.
Immigration officials declined to discuss how how Gooding was denied the same extension as her daughter, but spokeswoman Ana Santiago said the issue was being investigated. "Our thoughts and prayers are with the family. While we cannot discuss an individual case due to privacy laws, we are looking into this matter urgently," Santiago said.
Terry Bird, former chief counsel for the Atlanta office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement said the agency typically allows foreign parents to extend their stays up to a year when they have children getting American medical treatment.