The House Oversight Committee’s session on birth tourism turned into a stark example of how a booming industry can dodge scrutiny, as the founder of a Miami maternity concierge repeatedly invoked the Fifth Amendment when pressed about whether his business aided members of the Chinese Communist Party, MS-13, or other criminal networks. Lawmakers confronted public marketing that touted thousands of international deliveries and full-service help for foreign clients, but the company’s founder refused to answer substantive questions while a federal probe is ongoing. The hearing left Republicans and the public with public claims about scale and service, and very few answers under oath.
Dr. Wladimir Lorentz, who runs Miami Medical Concierge Services under the brand Have My Baby in Miami, showed up under subpoena before the House Oversight Committee’s Task Force on Defending Constitutional Rights and Exposing Institutional Abuses. Committee members say the company’s own promotions suggested a large, organized operation offering “complete logistical support” for foreign clients, including arrival logistics, housing, medical care, insurance, and obtaining documentation for newborns. When asked directly about the clientele and the scope of those services, Lorentz declined to answer on the advice of counsel, citing a pending federal investigation.
Task Force Chairman Rep. Brandon Gill took a direct tack, pressing Lorentz on whether his business helped children of Chinese Communist Party members obtain U.S. citizenship. The exchange included this exact back-and-forth:
Gill: “Does your business help children of members of the Chinese Communist Party obtain American citizenship?”
Lorentz: “On the advice of counsel, I respectfully decline to answer the question on the grounds that a truthful answer may tend to incriminate me, and I invoke my rights under the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution.”
https://x.com/RepBrandonGill/status/2094841550819729543
Gill did not stop there and pressed on with additional, pointed questions about organized criminal groups that have plagued communities in this country. Another exchange preserved the exact wording from the hearing:
Gill: “Have you ever facilitated the childbirth in America for a member of Tren de Aragua, MS-13, or any other narco-terrorist organization?”
Lorentz: “On the advice of counsel, I respectfully decline to answer the question on the grounds that a truthful answer may tend to incriminate me, and I invoke my rights under the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution.”
Invoking the Fifth does not equal guilt, and committee members acknowledged that fact during the session. Still, Republican lawmakers framed the refusals as evidence of a larger problem: an industry that advertises thousands of international births while operating in a legal gray area that can be exploited to undermine citizenship rules and national sovereignty. Rep. Gill told the committee that birth tourism “subverts the rule of law, cheapens American citizenship, and undermines our sovereignty as a nation,” reflecting a viewpoint that seeks stronger enforcement and clearer legal boundaries.
The company’s past marketing materials reportedly claimed “over 2,000 deliveries of international patients” and featured testimonials from families in Brazil and Colombia praising opportunities for U.S.-born children. Those promotional claims helped push the committee to subpoena records and explore service agreements after voluntary cooperation was refused. Committee investigators said they began asking for documents months earlier and issued a subpoena when Dr. Lorentz declined to testify without counsel’s presence.
Witnesses who did speak to the panel described a sizable phenomenon. One expert cited congressional testimony estimating 20,000 to 26,000 birth tourists arrive annually, potentially producing as many as 300,000 U.S.-born children over the last decade. China and Russia were mentioned as major source countries in that estimate, feeding concerns about scale and national security implications from a Republican perspective that prioritizes border integrity and the enforcement of existing law.
Once it became clear Lorentz would assert his Fifth Amendment rights to nearly every substantive question, Chairman Gill closed that portion of the hearing and had the record note the invocation. The committee then proceeded with other witnesses and written evidence, but the moment underscored a key challenge: public-facing claims about a business’s operations can raise serious policy and legal questions that are difficult to resolve when the principal declines to testify. For lawmakers focused on enforcing immigration rules, the situation highlights a need for clearer statutes and stronger investigative tools.
The founder remains under federal investigation, and the broader policy fight over birthright citizenship continues to animate conservative lawmakers and activists. Congressional Republicans who view birth tourism as an exploitation of U.S. law argue this hearing demonstrates both the scope of the problem and the limits of oversight when witnesses refuse to answer. The episode left a clear impression: public marketing that promises births on U.S. soil invites scrutiny, and when that scrutiny is met with silence, legislators see a gap that they insist must be closed.
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