Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and other senators are blasting the Biden administration's plan to expand Obamacare to more than 100,000 illegal migrants protected under the 2012 DACA program.
"In Biden's economy, inflation is on the rise while job growth is slowing down," Blackburn along with Sens. Mike Lee, R-Utah, J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, and Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., wrote in a joint May 8 letter to Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra. "Unemployment is at a two-year high, and foreign-born workers are flooding the workforce.
"Struggling American taxpayers are already on the hook for the costs of housing and welfare for illegal immigrants. And now, with this misguided rule, President Biden is asking these same hard-working, taxpaying Americans to foot the bill for illegal immigrants' healthcare. This new policy is not only unjust, it is economically unsustainable for millions of Americana citizens."
President Joe Biden's administration announced last week they will allow certain immigrants illegally brought to the U.S. as children access to federally run health insurance.
With the move, an estimated 100,000 previously uninsured participants in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program are expected to enroll in the Health Insurance Marketplace and the Basic Health Program, Reuters reported.
Blackburn and the senators say the Biden administration is trying to distract from the national security and humanitarian crisis at the border, including "losing track of more than 85,000 migrant children."
"When America's borders are open and our citizens' wallets are hurting, the last thing this administration should be doing is providing free healthcare coverage to immigrants," the letter added.
DACA enrollees will have access to related financial assistance, such as tax credits and reduced out-of-pocket costs under the change, which will be effective Nov. 1, according to a White House fact sheet.
The DACA program was launched in 2012 under former President Barack Obama.
Previously, DACA recipients were not allowed to enroll in Obamacare, but they could receive health insurance from an employer, buy private insurance, or access programs funded by some states and cities.
Blackburn and her fellow Republican senators say the American people deserve answers on such a "disastrous" policy and have framed six questions for Becerra to answer by May 15:
- Under this new rule, precisely how many immigrants will be able to enroll in ACA or state-based healthcare plans?
- If every DACA recipient eligible under your Department's rule applies for such healthcare coverage, exactly how much will that cost American taxpayers per year?
- Is this coverage limited to individual plans for DACA recipients, or does such coverage extend to family plans covering relatives —many of whom are illegally present in our country — as well?
- Does your Department intend to provide subsidized healthcare coverage to the nearly 10 million illegal immigrants who have flooded across the border who are not participants in the DACA program?
- Will you commit to testifying before Congress to outline in greater detail this plan to provide taxpayer-funded healthcare to DACA recipients?
- What is the legal justification for permitting these individuals to access this healthcare coverage without explicit congressional authorization?
Immigration is American voters' most important problem ahead of the November presidential elections, according to the Gallup poll the past three months.
Peter Malbin ✉
Peter Malbin, a Newsmax writer, covers news and politics. He has 30 years of news experience, including for the New York Times, New York Post and Newsweek.com.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.