When the Affordable Care Act was signed into law in 2009, a large segment of its support derived from Latinos. Opponents fought to strip out any provisions or language that would cover undocumented immigrants in the final federal bill, to which its supporters — fearful that opposing it would derail the landmark domestic legislation — acquiesced.
But now, all California families could soon have access to the state’s healthcare exchanges — regardless of their legal status.
Senate Bill 10, which was signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown on June 10, removes exclusion in Covered California — the state’s health insurance exchanged created under the Affordable Care Act — that prevents undocumented immigrants and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipients from purchasing health coverage on the state’s insurance exchange.
The legislation, which was sponsored by state Sen. Ricardo Lara (D- Commerce), also directs the state to apply for a federal 1332 waiver under the Affordable Care Act so that all Californians have access to Covered California.
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival status is an immigration policy that permits undocumented immigrants who entered the United State before their 16th birthday or before 2007 to receive two-year work permits in order to work legally in the United States. It also exempts them from deportation.
The Culver City Unified School District, as do many school districts throughout California, has so-called DACA students, said former Culver City mayor Gary Silbiger, and allowing them to access to state health insurance exchanges benefits everyone.
“If a student becomes ill, then everyone around in a large area like a school can become ill also. It’s also more cost-effective for everyone if people who are undocumented or have undocumented relatives did not have to go to the emergency room for their care and could see their own doctor instead,” said Silbiger, who has been an immigration attorney for 40 years.
CCUSD Board Vice President Katherine Paspalis noted that congressional Republicans insisted on the elimination of immigrant families without documentation from the Affordable Care Act, calling it a “very cruel and calculated right –wing maneuver.
“All children should have a right to get an education and all children should have the right to receive healthcare,” Paspalis added.
If the waiver is approved by the federal government, undocumented and DACA recipients will be able review and purchase an unsubsidized health plan through Covered California.
“[This] is a watershed moment for California’s immigrants and for the nation. By removing the unjust exclusion of undocumented immigrants and DACA recipients from Covered California, we have set another powerful precedent for other states to take action and ensure that everyone has the opportunity to purchase health coverage through their state’s insurance marketplace,” said California Immigrant Policy Center Executive Director Cynthia Buiza. “We will continue to fight for adults and family members who would otherwise qualify for full-scope Medi-Cal. Health conditions do not discriminate based on immigration status or income, and having access to health care is a right, not a privilege.”
Silbiger said the ability to legally access health providers regardless of one’s immigration status should be enshrined in law. “If we could have a discussion on what critical new rights we should have in our Bill of Rights or the California Constitution, it would probably be the right to healthcare,” he said.
Paspalis noted that Culver City has taken steps in past and more recent years to bridge the gap with students from different socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds. The district’s Culver City Backpacks for Kids program supplies approximately 100 families with backpacks of nutritious, easy-to-prepare food for weekend use each Friday and the Sandy Segal Youth Heath Center provides free healthcare for young adults.
In 2014, President Barack Obama extended the date that undocumented immigrants could qualify for DACA status until 2010 and lengthened the renewable deferral period to two years. The federal government is not currently accepting requests for DACA expansion due to a federal court injunction.
Gary Walker contributed to this story.