Perry's low blow on immigrant health care
Yesterday Texas Governor Rick Perry (either its old or its new campaign) attacked Mitt Romney, because illegal immigrants in Massachusetts are able to get medical benefits in the state health plan. There are a number of problems with this argument, including the need to provide medical care to prevent risks to public health. But for now I will focus on the hypocrisy of the load.
Katrina Trinko of National Review Online, said:
[P] Romney campaign also argues that Texas provides medical care for illegal immigrants, too. Among the examples cited include $62 million the care of illegal immigrants cost the Texas Emergency Medicaid fund and the $33 million the Texas Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Perinatal Coverage is estimated to have spent on illegal immigrants.It took the Romney campaign a few hours to uncover reams of other examples: Designated “emergency” care was provided to illegal immigrants on a non-emergency basis; state prenatal care is provided to “women living at up to 200% Federal Poverty Level (FPL) who do not otherwise qualify for Medicaid, typically due to their citizenship status”; substance abuse treatment is provided regardless of citizenship; and care is provided for special-needs children regardless of immigration status.
In particular, “The issue of providing preventive health care for undocumented immigrants was addressed in 2003 with the passage of H.B. 2292, which granted local indigent health care entities explicit permission to provide preventive and acute care services to area residents without regard to their immigration status.” Perry signed that bill. And the list goes on.
By no means do I want to suggest that Texas should not have been providing these services or that Perry shouldn’t have signed H.B. 2292. There are moral, public health and economic reasons not to have the sick and injured go untreated.
Texas Health Insurance Chips - News
Among the examples cited include $62 million the care of illegal immigrants cost the Texas Emergency Medicaid fund and the $33 million the Texas Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Perinatal Coverage is estimated to have spent on illegal
A Texas Children's Hospital study this month found that in the past three years 400000 Houston-area children lost coverage through their parents' work plans. During the same period, the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and Medicaid health
Arlene Wohglemuth, of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, pointed out that 1.2 million are eligible but not enrolled in either CHIP or Medicaid. That would indicate some people just make a personal choice that health insurance isn't all that important
It is the nation's first health maintenance organization (HMO) created just for children. Texas Children's Health Plan provides STAR/Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) to pregnant women, teens, children, and adults in Houston and
If they were asked, they said that primary care doctors or emergency departments had referred them. “Sixty-six percent of those who mentioned Medicaid-CHIP (Children's Health Insurance Program) were denied appointments, compared with 11 percent who