Washington, D.C. — Today, a small group of state attorneys general filed suit against the Biden Administration’s new rule expanding Affordable Care Act (ACA) eligibility to DACA recipients. Similarly, yesterday, Governor Greg Abbott signed an executive order requiring hospitals in Texas to ask patients about their immigration status. The lawsuit and order come only months after President Biden announced that DACA recipients would qualify for coverage through the ACA, a win made possible by the tenacious organizing of directly impacted immigrants and allies.
The Home Is Here Coalition — representing 100+ organizations across the country — released the following statement:
“It is nonsensical and cruel that a small group of anti-immigrant actors are trying to keep people from being able to access lifesaving healthcare. To be clear, these are the same people who want to end DACA and throw hundreds of thousands of lives into chaos. Healthcare is a fundamental human right that benefits not just the person receiving healthcare, but supports communities to thrive. Ensuring people have access to the medical care they need should not be controversial, especially when tax dollars and contributions from undocumented communities help to make government programs like the Affordable Care Act possible. Just as Gov. Abbott continues his violent attacks on immigrants by targeting patients in Texas who are undocumented, this baseless lawsuit from right-wing states is proof of their clear obsession with pushing a hate-filled agenda instead of meeting the needs of our families and communities.”
