A coalition of states led by Kansas has sued the Biden-Harris administration to block the federal government from providing free health care through the taxpayer-funded Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as Obamacare, to foreign nationals in the US illegally.
Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach filed the lawsuit in US District Court for the District of North Dakota Western Division and was joined by attorneys general from 14 states. The US government and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services are named as defendants.
At issue is a CMS final rule change called, “Clarifying the Eligibility of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Recipients and Certain Other NonCitizens for a Qualified Health Plan Through an Exchange, Advance Payments of the Premium Tax Credit, Cost-Sharing Reductions, a Basic Health Program.” In it, CMS redefines the legal term of “lawfully present” to include DACA recipients.
When Congress enacted the ACA, it limited eligibility to “citizen[s] or national[s] of the United States [and] aliens lawfully present in the United States.” By changing the definition of “lawfully present” to include DACA recipients, CMS is enabling them to have access to taxpayer-funded ACA coverage. Doing so violates the Administrative Procedures Act, federal law that prohibits taxpayer-funded benefits from being given to illegal foreign nationals, and the Affordable Care Act, the complaint states.
Congress has already limited eligibility coverage, which excludes DACA recipients. Additionally, “DACA recipients are, by definition, unlawfully present in the United States,” the complaint states. “Indeed, eligibility for DACA requires unlawful presence in the United States.”
Former President Barack Obama created DACA through executive order in 2012. It shielded children from deportation who were brought into the country illegally by their parents and has been in litigation for 12 years. A federal judge has twice ruled DACA is illegal. The most recent ruling was in a multistate lawsuit led by Texas to end DACA once and for all, the Center Square reported. The US Supreme Court is ultimately expected to decide the case.
Numerous reports suggest between 700,000 and 800,000 DACA recipients live in the US. The Los Angeles Times reports there are 578,680 on record with the US Citizenship and Immigration Services as of March 2023.
In June, President Biden announced he was expanding deportation protections for DACA recipients and streamlining request waivers to make it easier for them to obtain temporary visas, the Center Square reported. DACA supporters argue recipients should be granted citizenship, claiming they contribute to the US economy and are constructive members of society.
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Others argue that those with criminal records, at a minimum, should be deported. Within the first five years of the program, nearly 80,000 DACA recipients were released into the US with arrest records, the Center Square reported.
“Illegal aliens shouldn’t get a free pass into our country,” Kobach said. “They shouldn’t receive taxpayer benefits when they arrive, and the Biden-Harris administration shouldn’t get a free pass to violate federal law. That’s why I am leading a multistate lawsuit to stop this illegal regulation from going into effect.”
If the CMS final rule takes effect Nov. 1, more than 200,000 DACA recipients would automatically become eligible for taxpayer-subsidized health plans nationwide.
The lawsuit cites data from the Migration Policy Institute, Pew Research Center and others to estimate how many illegal foreign nationals are estimated to receive public benefits and the associated costs to taxpayers in each of the plaintiff states.
The lawsuit asks the court to postpone the effective date of the rule, vacate it, enjoin the defendants from implementing it and award plaintiff attorneys the costs of their fees.
Joining Kobach are the attorneys general representing Alabama, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee and Virginia.