President Joe Biden’s administration announced Friday that it finalized a rule that would extend Obamacare to thousands of illegal immigrants covered under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).
Ahead of Biden’s action, tens of thousands of immigrants who came to the country when they were children have been unable to access government provided health insurance because they were undocumented, according to Politico. The rule will now give more than 100,000 of those “dreamers” health insurance by modifying the definition of “lawfully present,” which previously prohibited those DACA recipients from accessing such care, The Washington Post reported.
“They incur higher costs and debts when they do finally receive care,” Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra told reporters, according to The Washington Post. “Making Dreamers eligible to enroll in coverage will improve their health and well-being and strengthen the health and well-being of our nation and our economy.”
President Biden: “Today, my Administration is expanding affordable, quality health care coverage to Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients.”
— Lucas Tomlinson (@LucasFoxNews) May 3, 2024
The finalized rule didn’t extend as far as the administration hoped it would, The Washington Post reported, adding that Biden aimed to provide Medicaid to migrants entering the country. The rule did not extend that far because of pushback received during the open comment period on the proposed move, senior officials told the outlet.
Biden’s Friday action will offer the thousands of “dreamers” tax breaks if they choose to access the health insurance, The Washington Post reported.
Biden has faced pressure on his handling of the migrant crisis ahead of the 2024 election. Over the last several months, the president has been considering executive action, though White House aides reportedly no longer feel a sense of urgency on the border issue, three people familiar with the administration’s thinking told Politico in March. (RELATED: White House Responds To Dramatic Border Video: It’s Trump’s Fault)
The president has reportedly been searching for the “right language” to move forward with executive action, according to Axios. While the debates over the executive action have continued, Biden’s administration has maintained that the migrant crisis is House Republicans’ fault as negotiations on a supplemental spending package sending funds to Ukraine, Israel and the southern border, stalled.
“House Republicans have gotten in the way. The speaker has gotten in the way. And so we want to deal with this issue. This is an issue that the majority of Americans care about. House Republicans, the speaker, got in the way. The question really is for the speaker: what changed? Speaker Johnson, what’s changed?” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said during a February press briefing.