Few Realize Immigration Reform And Health Care Reform Are Joined At The Hip States Miami Immigration Lawyer

Miami, FL (Law Firm Newswire) November 21, 2013 – Immigration reform is still one of the most pressing domestic issues in the U.S. It is being derailed once again.

“Most Americans get the idea that passing immigration reform would improve the economy, strengthen our presence abroad and offer extra stability for local communities. However, most don’t understand that immigration reform is closely tied to the health care system,” explained Larry Rifkin, a Miami immigration lawyer and managing partner at Rifkin & Fox-Isicoff, with law offices in Miami, Florida and Orlando, Florida.

It is odd that Americans and politicians seem to view each issue that faces the government and nation as a whole, as a single issue. No issue stands alone in this political cauldron. As of October 1, 2013, the online health insurance marketplaces opened for business. This is yet another step in the enormous implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The issue is that under the ACA, illegal immigrants are not eligible to buy health insurance, and cannot apply for subsidies to supplement health care expenses. The Gang of Eight’s Senate Bill 744 did give a nod to some of these issues by allowing Resident Provisional Immigrants to participate, as well agricultural workers and V non-immigrant visas. However, these classes must pay full freight.

“This results in not dealing with over 11 million illegals living in the U.S. and takes a big chunk out of the concept of health care for all. Ignoring this segment of society undermines the law’s primary mandate of lowering costs by decreeing that everyone be insured. Since the ACA largely operates with subsidies, which immigrants can’t access, they have to wait at least ten years to become citizens, and thus recognized. Does anyone else see the human rights injustice in this?” asked Rifkin.

What immigrant exclusion from subsidies does is bar them from accessing those things they have, as human beings, every right to, such a medical care when they are sick or injured. There should not be barriers to accessing the care they need when they are living here already and have no intentions of returning home. “As it stands, they go to hospitals for care right now and end up in the E.R. where taxpayers are paying for low-income Medicaid care, so it makes more sense to allow them to access health care and make them part of the whole,” Rifkin added.

With the number of distracting issues faced by the White House these days, one wonders not only about health care access, but whether or not immigration reform will come to pass. The next recess is in December, followed by the 2014 election swing. There does not appear to be much hope on the horizon for immigration reform.