The state of Washington has been approved to provide health insurance to illegal migrants within its borders. The Department of Treasury and the Department of Health and Human Services approved the state’s innovation waiver, which will change requirements for the Affordable Care Act.
The HHS and Treasury Department say Washington government requested the waiver in hopes to expand qualified health plans and a state affordability program to their residents regardless of immigration status. The goal of this initiative is to improve the country’s health equity.
“The waiver will help Washington work towards its goals of improving health equity and reducing racial disparities by expanding access to coverage for the uninsured population through the state Exchange, all the while not increasing costs for those currently enrolled.”
Tony Katz says not only does this equity move ignore their own minority residents, but also tells illegal immigrants it’s okay to cross the border.
“If you’re black in America, you are not getting as good of a deal as people crossing the border illegally…This is saying ‘don’t worry if you came into the country illegally and broke the law. It’s cool, we’ve got you covered.”
Until this approval, the ACA’s regulations had specifically excluded non-citizens living in the U.S. illegally from collecting the benefits of the program.
