Despite federal law barring extending Medicaid or Medicare to illegal immigrants, many local jurisdictions are providing a lot of healthcare to these people.
A Wall Street Journal survey of the 25 U.S. counties with the largest unauthorized immigrant populations found that 20 have programs that pay for the low-income uninsured to have visits to physicians, shots, prescription drugs, lab tests and surgeries. These include many illegal aliens.
The services usually are inexpensive or free to participants, “who must prove they live in the county but are told their immigration status doesn’t matter,” the WSJ reported.
The paper noted: “Many voters believe it is unfair to use tax dollars to help immigrants when American citizens struggle, and that doing so encourages illegal immigration. At the same time, American hospitals have long been required by law to screen and stabilize any patient, regardless of his or her ability to pay, which means taxpayers already are committed to paying for care in its most expensive setting.”
“{Local} politicians figure it is cheaper, safer and easier to give basic health services to immigrants who can’t get insurance than to treat them only in the county’s emergency rooms.”
