WASHINGTON — With the federal government shut down, Republicans are centering their message on a easy argument: “Democrats are grinding America to a halt as a way to give unlawful immigrants free well being care.”
That message, from a new advert from the Nationwide Republican Congressional Committee, has been echoed by GOP lawmakers and the Trump administration in latest days.
Vice President JD Vance claimed on Fox Information that the GOP’s “massive stunning invoice” turned off well being funding for “unlawful aliens.”
“Democrats wish to flip it again on,” he mentioned. “It’s not one thing that we made up. It’s not a speaking level. It’s within the textual content of the invoice that they initially gave to us to reopen the federal government.”
U.S. legislation already prohibits unauthorized immigrants from gaining any federally backed well being care protection — via Medicaid, the Inexpensive Care Act, the Kids’s Well being Insurance coverage Program or in any other case. A 1996 statute established that.
Home Minority Chief Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., mentioned Republicans are “mendacity” in regards to the Democratic invoice out of weak point.
“Nowhere have Democrats prompt that we’re concerned with altering federal legislation,” he mentioned at some point earlier than the shutdown. “The query for the president is whether or not he is concerned with defending the well being care of the American individuals.”
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The information
The Republican declare is extremely deceptive.
The Democratic invoice wouldn’t change current legislation barring people who find themselves within the U.S. illegally from getting federal well being care protection.
The dispute facilities round immigrants whom the federal authorities has decreed as “lawfully current,” however who have not formally been given authorized standing that’s enforceable in court docket.
There are an estimated 1.4 million individuals thought-about “lawfully current” in the US — together with Deferred Motion for Childhood Arrivals program beneficiaries, who got here to the U.S. illegally as kids; individuals who have Momentary Protected Standing; and refugees and folks searching for asylum who’re nonetheless going via the authorized course of. Republicans are searching for to ban Medicaid or ACA eligibility for these teams.
They aren’t “undocumented” or “unlawful” immigrants. The federal government is aware of who they’re, and lots of are going via the method of searching for official authorized standing or inexperienced playing cards. Amongst different issues, they aren’t illegal border-crossers who’ve been flagged for deportation.
The GOP legislation prohibited these “lawfully current” immigrants from accessing federal well being care packages. The Democratic invoice would restore that entry — however not for undocumented individuals who lack protected standing — whereas additionally restoring the $1 trillion in Medicaid cuts, a core objective for Democrats.
The White Home defended its declare by pointing to 1 portion of the “massive stunning invoice” that Democrats are searching for to repeal, a bit known as “Alien Medicaid eligibility.” That part establishes the brand new limitations on well being care entry for lawfully current immigrants (“alien” is the federal time period used to explain a noncitizen).
The White Home additionally says the Biden administration abused the immigration parole program to grant non permanent entry to the U.S. for individuals who should not have obtained it. But when the Trump administration revoked that parole standing, these people would lose their eligibility for any well being care protection underneath the Democratic proposal.
One other provision within the Democratic invoice would prolong subsidies that hold medical health insurance premiums low for individuals insured via the Inexpensive Care Act, that are set to run out later this yr. Undocumented immigrants are already barred from accessing that cash, and nothing within the Democrats’ invoice adjustments that.
Megan Lebowitz and Tara Prindiville contributed.
