Birth Tourism: Scores of Companies Operating 'Maternity Hotels' in Southern California

I'm seeing more and more stories like this, with examples from across Southern California.

At the Los Angeles Times, "In suburbs of L.A., a cottage industry of birth tourism":

USA Baby Care's website makes no attempt to hide why the company's clients travel to Southern California from China and Taiwan. It's to give birth to an American baby.

"Congratulations! Arriving in the U.S. means you've already given your child a surefire ticket for winning the race," the site says in Chinese. "We guarantee that each baby can obtain a U.S. passport and related documents."

That passport is just the beginning of a journey that will lead some of the children back to the United States to take advantage of free public schools and low-interest student loans, as the website notes. The whole family may eventually get in on the act, since parents may be able to piggyback on the child's citizenship and apply for a green card when the child turns 21.

Hey, they're working the system. And don't you love that "free" public education.

Amazing. Man are we suckers sometimes.