The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
JUDGE BLOCKS IMMIGRANT HEALTH INSURANCE RULE
A federal judge in Portland, Oregon, put on hold a Trump administration rule requiring immigrants prove they will have health insurance or can pay for medical care before they can get visas. U.S. District Judge Michael Simon granted a temporary restraining order that prevented the rule from going into effect Sunday.
Seven U.S. citizens and a nonprofit organization filed the federal lawsuit Wednesday contending the rule would block nearly two-thirds of all prospective legal immigrants. The lawsuit also said the rule would greatly reduce or eliminate the number of immigrants who enter the U.S. with family-sponsored visas. “We’re very grateful that the court recognized the need to block the health care ban,” said Justice Action Center senior litigator Esther Sung, who argued at a hearing on behalf of the plaintiffs.
The proclamation signed by President Donald Trump in October applies to people seeking immigrant visas from abroad — not those in the U.S. already. It does not affect lawful permanent residents and doesn’t apply to asylum-seekers, refugees or children.
The proclamation — part of the
Trump administration’s effort to limit immigrant access to public programs while trying to move the country away from a family-based immigration system to a merit-based system — said immigrants will be barred from entering unless they are to be covered by health insurance within 30 days of entering or have enough financial resources to pay for any medical costs.
The White House said in a statement Sunday that it strongly disagrees with the decision. “Once again, a nationwide injunction is permitting a single judge to thwart the President’s policy judgment on a matter where Congress expressly gave the President authority,” said the statement from Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham. “It is wrong and unfair for a single district court judge to thwart the policies that the President determined would best protect the United States healthcare system — and for the United States taxpayers to suffer the grave consequences of the immense strain inflicted on the healthcare system from subsidizing uncompensated care for those seeking admission.”
According to the Migration Policy Institute, a nonpartisan immigration think tank, 57% of U.S. immigrants had private health insurance in 2017 and 30% had public health insurance coverage.