The Trump administration is attempting to reverse a decades-old policy that excluded a broad group of immigrants from accessing social services and health benefits, causing widespread fear among immigrant advocates. Immigration groups and health experts argue that this could harm millions by cutting off access to basic health services, including for U.S. citizens and immigrants who have legal permission to be in the country. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced in July that it was reinterpreting a 1996 federal law that has allowed immigrants access to certain public benefits, part of an effort to further crack down on what the White House says is the abuse of taxpayer services by undocumented immigrants.
The new policy includes a host of new services that would be off-limits to undocumented immigrants, including Head Start, Title X family planning services, and the community health center program. Advocates say the administration’s shift fits a pattern, as they are limiting access and restricting eligibility for people who are actually here with authorization and with a lawful status.
Mutesh Popat, CEO of the Venice Family Clinic, a community health center serving more than 45,000 people in the Los Angeles area, warns that the changes will further entrench those people as an underclass, making them reluctant to seek out care and services they need. It is unclear how the administration will enforce the new policy, and the conflict between the federal government’s policy change and the statutory requirement for Community Health Centers will likely cause confusion among providers and immigrant patients alike.
