Undocumenteds Eligible For Medi-Cal
A new report by University of California researchers concludes that many thousands of young undocumented Latinos statewide are eligible for Medi-Cal coverage but may not enroll out of fear of alerting authorities to their legal status.
The report, jointly released by health-oriented research groups at UC Berkeley, UC San Francisco and UC Berkeley, concluded that as many as 125,000 young low-income undocumented immigrants are eligible for Medi-Cal coverage under the state's rules.
The reason they are eligible for coverage is an Obama Administration program known as Deferred Action.
The program stays any legal proceedings against undocumented immigrants who arrived in the U.S. before the age of 16, were under the age of 31 in June 2012 and are either students or have graduated from high school, hold an equivalency degree or have been honorably discharged from the military.
Federal law has barred undocumented immigrants from participating in Medicaid. However, California's rules allow those who have declared for deferred action to enroll in Medi-Cal if their income is low enough to make them eligible.
According to data compiled by the authors of the report about 150,000 undocumented immigrants have declared their eligibility for deferred action – about half of those believed to be living in the state. More than 80% are currently eligible for Medi-Cal, according to demographic data.
A survey by the UC Berkeley Labor Center found that 69% of those immigrants it polled lacked insurance coverage, and half had delayed getting medical care they felt they needed in the prior year.
"This state policy could significantly improve health coverage rates among these young immigrants, increase access to the care they need, and reduce the burden on safety net providers," says Laurel Lucia, a policy analyst with the UC Berkeley Labor Center. "However, immigrant youth may still face barriers to enrolling because they lack information on the program or fear deportation for themselves or family members."
The study suggested a piece of legislation, Senate Bill 1005, as a potential solution. If passed into law, it would guarantee Medi-Cal eligibility for all state residents regardless of their immigration status.
