A federal judge has blocked the implementation of an executive order by the president that would have required immigrants to prove they had health insurance or could afford medical care.
The rule was slated to take effect on Monday, but the judge granted a 28-day stay and has scheduled a hearing for November 22.
The White House announced last month that people seeking immigrant visas from abroad will be barred from entering the country unless they are to be covered by health insurance within 30 days of entering or have enough financial resources to pay for any medical costs.
The prospective measure would not apply to those already in the United States, nor would it apply to lawful permanent residents, asylum seekers, refugees or children. However, it would apply to parents and spouses of U.S. citizens, the White House said.
The White House said in a statement at the time the proclamation was issued that too many non-citizens were taking advantage of the country’s “generous public health programs,” and said immigrants contribute to the problem of “uncompensated health care costs.”
The judge, U.S. District Judge Michael Simon, issued the order following a suit filed by 7 U.S. citizens and an immigrant advocacy organization. They claim that up to two-thirds of immigrants would be barred from entering the country if the policy went into effect.
I call BS on that.
The prospective measure would not apply to those already in the United States, nor would it apply to lawful permanent residents, asylum seekers, refugees or children. However, it would apply to parents and spouses of U.S. citizens, the White House said.
The rule wouldn’t even come close to affecting two-thirds of immigrants. But it would target those most likely to be dependent on public money for their health care.
According to the nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute, 57 percent of U.S. immigrants had private health insurance in 2017 compared to 69 percent of U.S.-born citizens who had private health coverage, and 30 percent of immigrants had public health insurance versus 36 percent of native-born people.
From 2013 to 2017, the uninsured rate for immigrants dropped 12 percent, from 32 to 20 percent, due to the Affordable Care Act, according to the think tank.
If the U.S. government has a moral obligation to care for legal and illegal immigrants who are here, I don’t see why that same government shouldn’t be able to make a determination who can enter based on a means-test for health insurance. It’s sound policy. As in all policy matters, individual exceptions for spouses and immediate family should be considered.
This is lawfare writ large. They don’t like the policy, disagree with it politically, and look to block it using the court system and ideological allies on the bench. This is why it is so much better for congress to address these issues, rather than have a president rule like a monarch issuing decrees.
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