SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Parents and children receive holiday toys from immigrant rights activists on December 19, 2018 in Miramar, Florida. (Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Another 'Economic and Racist Attack' as Trump Moves to Bar Immigrants Who Can't Afford Costly Private Health Insurance
"Donald Trump is panicking, and using cruel attacks on immigrants to distract and sow fear."
Oct 05, 2019
President Donald Trump announced late Friday that, effective Nov. 3, the U.S. will deny visas to immigrants who cannot afford America's expensive health insurance without federal subsidies, a move rights groups decried as yet another cruel, racist, and unlawful attack on vulnerable people.
"Health insurance is hard enough for immigrants to access in this county; it's hard enough for citizens too," tweeted United We Dream. "Our healthcare system is shot and the Trump administration knows this. This is another economic and racist attack on a community who deserves healthcare in the first place."
The Trump administration's new rule, reportedly the idea of xenophobic White House adviser Stephen Miller, would require foreign nationals to prove they are wealthy enough to cover their own healthcare costs without government assistance.
" Medicaid doesn't count," the Associated Press reported. "And an immigrant will not be able to obtain a visa if using the Affordable Care Act's subsidies when buying insurance."
Larry Levitt, executive vice president for health policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation, said that "while lawful immigrants qualify for ACA subsidies, they'll be stuck in a catch-22 because subsidized coverage does not qualify as insurance under the proclamation."
As the Guardian reported, the Trump administration's rule--which is expected to face a torrent of legal challenges--"will be applied to people seeking immigrant visas, not those in the U.S. already. But it would apply to the spouses and parents of U.S. citizens."
In response to the new rule, the National Immigration Law Center (NILC) accused Trump of lashing out at immigrants "to distract us from his scandals," referring to the escalating impeachment inquiry sparked by the president's talks with Ukraine.
"This latest attack on immigrants is not good for hospitals, it's not good for patients, and it's not good for the health and well-being of communities across the country," NILC said.
Julian Castro, a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate, echoed NILC.
" Donald Trump is panicking, and using cruel attacks on immigrants to distract and sow fear," tweeted Castro. "Immigrants contribute more to this country than Donald Trump or Stephen Miller ever could--and their hate won't stop us from speaking out in defense of immigrants."
According to the New York Times, if the new policy is implemented, those seeking visas will "be asked by consular officers to show how they intend to be covered by health insurance within 30 days of arriving in the United States. That could include proof that they will have healthcare through a job or will be covered under a relative's insurance."
"If they cannot show that to the satisfaction of the consular office," the Times reported, "their visa will be denied."
Doug Rand, co-founder of Boundless Immigration, told Buzzfeed Friday night that the new policy "is as shameless as it is stunning."
"It will be chaotic to implement and guaranteed to separate U.S. citizens from their legal immigrant spouses and other close relatives," Rand said. "Was this drafted over lunch today in a desperate effort to change the news cycle?"
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
President Donald Trump announced late Friday that, effective Nov. 3, the U.S. will deny visas to immigrants who cannot afford America's expensive health insurance without federal subsidies, a move rights groups decried as yet another cruel, racist, and unlawful attack on vulnerable people.
"Health insurance is hard enough for immigrants to access in this county; it's hard enough for citizens too," tweeted United We Dream. "Our healthcare system is shot and the Trump administration knows this. This is another economic and racist attack on a community who deserves healthcare in the first place."
The Trump administration's new rule, reportedly the idea of xenophobic White House adviser Stephen Miller, would require foreign nationals to prove they are wealthy enough to cover their own healthcare costs without government assistance.
" Medicaid doesn't count," the Associated Press reported. "And an immigrant will not be able to obtain a visa if using the Affordable Care Act's subsidies when buying insurance."
Larry Levitt, executive vice president for health policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation, said that "while lawful immigrants qualify for ACA subsidies, they'll be stuck in a catch-22 because subsidized coverage does not qualify as insurance under the proclamation."
As the Guardian reported, the Trump administration's rule--which is expected to face a torrent of legal challenges--"will be applied to people seeking immigrant visas, not those in the U.S. already. But it would apply to the spouses and parents of U.S. citizens."
In response to the new rule, the National Immigration Law Center (NILC) accused Trump of lashing out at immigrants "to distract us from his scandals," referring to the escalating impeachment inquiry sparked by the president's talks with Ukraine.
"This latest attack on immigrants is not good for hospitals, it's not good for patients, and it's not good for the health and well-being of communities across the country," NILC said.
Julian Castro, a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate, echoed NILC.
" Donald Trump is panicking, and using cruel attacks on immigrants to distract and sow fear," tweeted Castro. "Immigrants contribute more to this country than Donald Trump or Stephen Miller ever could--and their hate won't stop us from speaking out in defense of immigrants."
According to the New York Times, if the new policy is implemented, those seeking visas will "be asked by consular officers to show how they intend to be covered by health insurance within 30 days of arriving in the United States. That could include proof that they will have healthcare through a job or will be covered under a relative's insurance."
"If they cannot show that to the satisfaction of the consular office," the Times reported, "their visa will be denied."
Doug Rand, co-founder of Boundless Immigration, told Buzzfeed Friday night that the new policy "is as shameless as it is stunning."
"It will be chaotic to implement and guaranteed to separate U.S. citizens from their legal immigrant spouses and other close relatives," Rand said. "Was this drafted over lunch today in a desperate effort to change the news cycle?"
President Donald Trump announced late Friday that, effective Nov. 3, the U.S. will deny visas to immigrants who cannot afford America's expensive health insurance without federal subsidies, a move rights groups decried as yet another cruel, racist, and unlawful attack on vulnerable people.
"Health insurance is hard enough for immigrants to access in this county; it's hard enough for citizens too," tweeted United We Dream. "Our healthcare system is shot and the Trump administration knows this. This is another economic and racist attack on a community who deserves healthcare in the first place."
The Trump administration's new rule, reportedly the idea of xenophobic White House adviser Stephen Miller, would require foreign nationals to prove they are wealthy enough to cover their own healthcare costs without government assistance.
" Medicaid doesn't count," the Associated Press reported. "And an immigrant will not be able to obtain a visa if using the Affordable Care Act's subsidies when buying insurance."
Larry Levitt, executive vice president for health policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation, said that "while lawful immigrants qualify for ACA subsidies, they'll be stuck in a catch-22 because subsidized coverage does not qualify as insurance under the proclamation."
As the Guardian reported, the Trump administration's rule--which is expected to face a torrent of legal challenges--"will be applied to people seeking immigrant visas, not those in the U.S. already. But it would apply to the spouses and parents of U.S. citizens."
In response to the new rule, the National Immigration Law Center (NILC) accused Trump of lashing out at immigrants "to distract us from his scandals," referring to the escalating impeachment inquiry sparked by the president's talks with Ukraine.
"This latest attack on immigrants is not good for hospitals, it's not good for patients, and it's not good for the health and well-being of communities across the country," NILC said.
Julian Castro, a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate, echoed NILC.
" Donald Trump is panicking, and using cruel attacks on immigrants to distract and sow fear," tweeted Castro. "Immigrants contribute more to this country than Donald Trump or Stephen Miller ever could--and their hate won't stop us from speaking out in defense of immigrants."
According to the New York Times, if the new policy is implemented, those seeking visas will "be asked by consular officers to show how they intend to be covered by health insurance within 30 days of arriving in the United States. That could include proof that they will have healthcare through a job or will be covered under a relative's insurance."
"If they cannot show that to the satisfaction of the consular office," the Times reported, "their visa will be denied."
Doug Rand, co-founder of Boundless Immigration, told Buzzfeed Friday night that the new policy "is as shameless as it is stunning."
"It will be chaotic to implement and guaranteed to separate U.S. citizens from their legal immigrant spouses and other close relatives," Rand said. "Was this drafted over lunch today in a desperate effort to change the news cycle?"
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.