Virginia Dems advance bill through Senate to provide taxpayer-backed health insurance to illegal immigrants | Fox News
By: Joe Schoffstall (Fox News)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Virginia Democrats have advanced a bill that would expand taxpayer-backed health insurance to illegal immigrants.
On Tuesday, the Democrat-controlled state senate propelled the "Cover All Kids" Act on a 21-19 party-line vote. The legislation seeks to provide illegal immigrants under 19 years of age who are not covered by a group health plan or insurance program access to "state-funded comprehensive health care coverage."
While the eligibility requirements are similar to the commonwealth's Medicaid program, the bill differs by including the language, "but for their immigration status would be eligible for medical assistance services," expanding access to illegal immigrants.
"Because of President Biden's open-border policy, every state is now a border state--including Virginia," State Sen. Glen Sturtevant, a Republican, previously told Fox News Digital. "Meanwhile, Virginia Democrats in the General Assembly are making every effort to undermine legal immigration and incentivize illegal immigration into the commonwealth."
"This session, Virginia Democrats have introduced bills that directly incentivize illegal immigration," Sturtevant said. "They want to grant illegal immigrants driver's licenses that are valid for up to eight years. Now, they're also working to divert limited resources from low-income Virginians to pay for healthcare for illegal immigrants. That will cost Virginia taxpayers more than $100 million just in this decade."
"These bad policies jeopardize not just Virginia's healthcare system but create perverse incentives that illegal immigrants will see as a green light to travel to Virginia for free schooling, driver's licenses, and now, free healthcare," Sturtevant continued. "We have seen the mess that sanctuary city policies have created in places like Chicago and New York. We must protect the rule of law in Virginia and ensure that Virginia citizens come first."
The "Cover All Kids" legislation would extend coverage to uninsured illegal immigrants whose families are at 205% of the federal poverty level. The Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy, a supporter of the bill, assessed this to be around $51,000 for a family of three.
The legislation's proponents reason that 12 states and Washington, D.C., similarly use or plan on using state funds to cover illegal immigrants, and Virginia should follow suit.
"Health care is a human right, and we know how vital access to care is to a child's health, well-being, and development," Virginia state Sen. Ghazala Hashmi, a Democrat who sponsored the bill, said following the vote.
"With this legislation, we are making a commitment to Virginia's families that all children will have access to essential health care."
Virginia state Sen. Ghazala Hashmi sponsored the bill.
The bill will now make its way to the Democrat-controlled House of Delegates. If approved, it would then go to Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin's desk, who has taken a hardline stance on securing the border.
Joe Schoffstall is a politics producer/reporter for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to Joe.Schoffstall@Fox.com and on Twitter: @joeschoffstall
No Trump or fascist nonsense, no dissing source.
Memes must be on topic.
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Our country is in debt to the tune of over $34 trillion.
We can't afford to pay for the world to come here for freebies.
Democrats, wake the hell up.
To be fair, neither party is fiscally conservative. Both sides have overspent on what they wanted to spend money on. The piper will come due and will very likely happen within our lifetimes. It's not gonna be pretty when it happens.
there are far too few fiscal conservatives and our present system perpetuates the lavish, unnecessary spending.
I suppose if Democrats ever get their way, the whole United States will be a sanctuary for anyone wanting to come here for any reason, and we will be supporting many of them.
I don’t understand the urgency to provide health care for someone here illegally when we can’t provide it to the people who are here legally.
When Dems get their way, I wouldn't be surprised to find that aliens will be automatically eligible for Medicare, Medicare, and Social Security benefits at US taxpayer expense,
You mean when certain members of the government prevent us from providing it to the people who are here legally? We very easily could, and it has been shown that when done correctly, we would actually save money with it.
Save money.
Don't fall for that lie.
I agree that there has been political opposition to universal healthcare, but how is the answer to that insuring illegal aliens? And how is it that they can’t insure all citizens because of that opposition, but they can insure illegal aliens?
Do show us a plan that would actually do that. And don't ignore the elephant in the room by ignoring the consequences of such a plan.
1. All, these "illegal aliens" you keep talking about are mostly legal asylum seekers.
2. Ask yourself what the odds are that one of them will need access to healthcare.
3. What is less expensive, buying insurance or going to the ER with every medical problem?
4. What is more important to you, wanting these legal asylums seekers to die, or saving money on what we are paying now?
The obvious point should be that migrants should be self supporting.
What persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion do Hondurans face in their home country?
I’ll answer your questions, but I still expect you to answer the ones I posed. That’s how a conversation works.
I sense - based on your need to put it in quotation marks - that identifying people as illegal aliens offends you. That is a you problem. Citizens of another country are aliens when they are not in their own country. That’s what the word means. They are here either legally or illegally. The premise of this seed is not legal asylum seekers, but “illegal immigrants.” That’s a quote from the title.
Why? Why do I need to guess - and either of us would be guessing - if they need access to healthcare? If mere need implies that it should be publicly funded, I can promise you there are many citizens and legal residents who are in need. We should seek to pay for them before we attempt to pay for people who are here illegally.
An irrelevant question that evades the points I made in earlier comments as well as this one.
A childish tactic to accuse me of wanting someone to die. Do you want citizens to die? Would you rather American citizens suffer while we pay for medical care for citizens of other countries?
so they get free what I have to pay for and I have to pay taxes to buy theirs?
Yes, a blue light special for illegal immigrants
Your job as an American taxpayer is to support others in the style they'd like to become accustomed to and do without yourself. Get with the program!!
Yeah, and let that pull my style of living down even more.
That's what happens when we let people in who can't support themselves.
I don't want any of them let in and saying they are seeking asylum is bullshit!
I would make asylum seekers apply at the closest US embassy to their own country, and stay there until a decision is made. They can do teleconferences.
I would not let any of them in, they are just other countries problems
Insane. Just goes to show there’s no such thing as a moderate democrat. They talk about being an independent voice on the campaign trial and then they all vote in line with the looniest of the loons.
Crazy and so is anyone who would vote for idiots like this.
Virginia Republicans gave the Democrats the majority in both houses with their position on abortion. They can't see that abortion restrictions looses more elections than it wins.