By Kenneth J. Theisen, 7/25/07
Last year on July 1, 2006, a new xenophobic law took effect
that required states to obtain evidence of citizenship and nationality when
determining whether people were eligible for Medicaid. This law was allegedly
meant to hinder the undocumented from receiving free medical care.
Anti-immigrant groups and their allies in Congress claimed that ineligible
immigrants were taking advantage of Medicaid programs in various states. More
than 50 million people are eligible for Medicaid which is a federal and state
program that provides medical care to the poor. It has never been proven that
large numbers of ineligible immigrants were enrolled in the program.
I have previously written how the Bush regime took this law
and implemented regulations to require such documentation for newborn citizens
which resulted in many babies being denied Medicaid coverage (see “Baby Killer!
Bush Regime Attacks Health Care For Babies: How Low Can This Regime Go?”).
But a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report
indicates that babies were not the only ones who have had their health and
lives endangered under the Bush regime Medicaid rules. According to the report,
22 of 44 states reported Medicaid enrollment declines since the enactment of
the law. But most of the decline is among those actually eligible for Medicaid,
not “illegal immigrants” who for the most part were never enrolled in the
program in the first place.
In those states with declining enrollment, most of those said
the reduction was due to delays in coverage or a loss of coverage for eligible
citizens who were unable to produce the new required documentation. Ten of the
reporting states did not know what effect the new law had on their enrollments.
According to the GAO report state officials, “stated the
requirement has resulted in enrollment declines and has posed administrative
burdens to states and individuals. Further, our survey results indicate that
the effects states experienced in the first year may continue at least to some
extent in the future.”
Thirty-five of the 44 reporting states claimed that the new
documentation requirements increased the time spent processing enrollment
applications adding to costs. According to GAO estimates in one state alone,
the extra time spent on processing would have added at least 40,000 hours of
staff time per month. Proponents of the law had claimed that the law would save
the government at least $90 million per year but this estimate did not account
for increased staff time.
But the law was not really passed to save money. The real
intention was to politically attack immigrants and poor people. Opponents of the legislation argued that the
law would make it more difficult for people to jump through all the
bureaucratic hoops to successfully enroll in the program. The more documentation required was projected
by opponents to result in fewer people enrolling and this report bears this
out. This was likely the intent of the Bush regime in the first place.
Bush views health care as a luxury, not a right. Congress is currently considering legislation
to expand health coverage for children and Bush has already threatened to veto
any such bill even before it is written. Bush stated that such legislation
would lead the nation “down the path to government-run health care for
every American.” Heaven forbid!
What could be worse that medical coverage for all?
This is coming from a man who on July 21st had a colonoscopy
performed on him at taxpayers” expense. I must have missed Bush’s criticism of
the White House Medical Unit, a 24/7 unit funded at taxpayers” expense. Bush
has the benefits of medical and dental clinics within the White House. There is
also an outpatient clinic at Camp David. So
why should Bush care for the more than 47 million Americans who have no medical
coverage. At least he is covered. Screw
the rest of us.