Lawmakers and advocates push health coverage for undocumented immigrants under 21
On March 29, 2021, a petition for legislation was proposed to ensure health coverage for all children under 21, regardless of immigration status. It has yet to be passed, but that could soon change as lawmakers and advocates hope to push through a bill extending Mass Health coverage to the thousands of illegal immigrants in Massachusetts. Current law requires state residency to be eligible for coverage, but lawmakers want to do away with that.
At a hearing on Tuesday, July 25th, 2023, bill supporters expressed why they feel Mass Health services should be offered to immigrants.
“Children without legal immigration status are not eligible for full MassHealth coverage. Bill supporters said that leaves families to navigate a complicated patchwork of safety net programs that have limits on coverage for some services like mental health, dental care or prescription drugs, and do not cover others, like eyeglasses or home health care.”.[1]
Currently, more than 2 million children across Massachusetts receive coverage from MassHealth. This number represents approximately 40% of the children in the state who are under 21.[2]
While lawmakers are still mulling around the budget for next year, it is estimated that 20 billion dollars will be allotted to fund this bill with the expectation that the federal government would reimburse the state for most of the expenses. In the past, the reimbursement rate was just over 50%. Massachusetts is already experiencing a staff shortage in the medical field with no relief in sight. No proposed plan to combat this problem seems to exist, and with a potential increase in patients, longer wait times would be a certainty.
Charlie W.
Sources
[1] https://www.wgbh.org/news/politics/2023/07/25/bill-would-make-kids-without-legal-immigration-status-eligible-for-masshealth
[2] https://massbudget.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IssueBrief_MassHealth-Cost_SFY2022.pdf
Massachusetts First 
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