ACAP Statement on Public Charge Rule

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 12, 2019
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
 Jeff Van Ness, (202) 204-7515; jvanness@communityplans.net

STATEMENT OF ACAP CEO MARGARET A. MURRAY ON PUBLIC CHARGE RULE

WASHINGTON—ACAP Chief Executive Officer Margaret A. Murray today issued the following statement on a regulation issued by the Department of Homeland Security which would allow the government to consider a wide range of public benefits an immigrant has already used or is likely to use when making decisions on his or her immigration status:

“We oppose this regulation.

“It will drive up the numbers of the uninsured—among both citizens and non-citizens. It will prevent people who are, by law, eligible from Medicaid from coming forward for coverage out of fear that they would be denied legal residency status. DHS has said as much in the past.

“The increase in the uninsured would leave it to safety net providers—community health centers, public hospitals, county health departments and others—to clean up the mess by forcing them to provide uncompensated care when the uninsured get sick.

“DHS should rescind this ill-considered rule.”

About ACAP
ACAP represents 66 not-for-profit Safety Net Health Plans, which collectively serve more than 20 million people enrolled in Medicaid, Medicare, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and other public health programs. For more information, visit www.communityplans.net.

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