Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Members of Congress Advocate for Health Insurance for Criminals

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6 comments:

evan said...

Funny, I thought conservatives believed in upholding traditional views of the law.

September 22, 2009 at 2:49 PM
Kelsey said...

First, I don't know if you posted the correct link or not because this article is about how Obama's plan applies to undocumented immigrants, not "Members of Congress." There are still disparities between the House plans, Senate plans, and Obama's plan on how the issue of undocumented immigrants should be dealt with. In the House plans, undocumented immigrants are banned from recieving federal subsities, however they are not banned from buying private insurance or particpating in the exchange. In the Senate Finance plan, undocumented immigrants are banned from recieving federal subsities and from accessing the state exchanges (as well as providing documentation of name, SSN, and DOB). Obama has advocated for undocumented immigrants to not recieve federal subsities, as well as to restrict their use in insurance exchanges set up by the government.

Secondly, how is this advocating for health insurance for criminals? It is restricting government funds from helping undocumented immigrants to pay for health insurance.

And more importantly, i must reiterate why is it so wrong that they get health insurance if they purchase it from private companies? There would be significant savings in the government reimbursements towards emergency room care for the uninsured, in addition to other public health issues.

September 22, 2009 at 3:02 PM
jbeslity11 said...

Evan, if you are here in this country without proper documentation, then you are a criminal. They know they are committing a crime when they cross the border, just like someone knows they are guilty of a crime when they steal something. The illegals get arrested, get their court hearing, and are deported. Cut and dry.

I have no sympathy for them because my family sacrificed and immigrated here lawfully and are better for it.

Kelsey, I cringe when you throw out the word "undocumented". The people in question are here illegally, therefore they should be deported. End of story.

The article discusses how members of the Hispanic Caucus believe that these people should be able to participate in the insurance exchange, or otherwise buy private coverage themselves. Now, my point of view is that they should not be allowed to buy anything in this country, because they are here illegally!

And yes, when uninsured people, regardless of their immigration status, go to the emergency room, it is at the expense of those of us who do have insurance. This speaks to the urgent need for drastic immigration reform, which will most likely entail easing the process for the would-be criminals already in this country to become lawful citizens and (hopefully) strengthening border security.

September 22, 2009 at 3:31 PM
evan said...

You miss my point. No one is a criminal under the law before they're tried. Period.

For this bill to give health insurance to "criminals," as you put it, they would have to be tried, found to be here illegally, and then be able to buy health insurance.

September 22, 2009 at 3:40 PM
jbeslity11 said...

But if they don't have to produce documentation, as Kelsey is implying, "Why is it so wrong that they get health insurance if they purchase it from private companies?" then they would be able to buy insurance without their immigration standing coming into question at any point. That, in my mind, equals criminals buying health insurance regulated by the government through an insurance marketplace.

September 22, 2009 at 3:45 PM
Kelsey said...

That only applies if they purchase from private insurers in the exchange. There will also be private insurers that are out of the exchange, and therefore not regulated by the government.

But, you still aren't answering the question of why it is a problem that they buy private insurance. I understand that they are in the country illegally, but why is it more of a problem that they purchase health insurance than anything else that they purchase while they are in the United States? There is obviously an immigration problem in our country, but you cannot just say that they are criminals and can't purchase anything until we have immigration reform. All I am saying is that isn't it better that they are healthy (or not contributing to poor health of the country) while they are here. And since money is such an issue in health care reform, this would actually help reduce the money we spend on them until immigration reform happens.

September 22, 2009 at 4:23 PM

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