A federal court on Dec. 9 temporarily blocked in 19 states the expansion of Obamacare coverage to immigrants who were illegally brought to the United States as children, also known as “Dreamers.”
U.S. District Judge for the District of North Dakota Daniel M. Traynor granted the states a preliminary injunction and stay against enforcing the rule, stating that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) had “acted contrary to law” by providing federal health care benefits to DACA recipients, who are, by definition, not lawfully present in the United States.
The Department of Health and Human Services said on May 3 that the CMS had modified the definition of “lawfully present”—which is used to determine eligibility for coverage—to enable DACA recipients to legally enroll on the marketplace exchange.
However, Traynor stated that it is Congress that should determine who qualifies for lawful presence status in the United States, rather than agencies such as the CMS.
“It by no means allows the agency to circumvent congressional authority and redefine the term ‘lawfully present’,” he added.
Traynor determined that the states demonstrated irreparable harm, as they would be forced to either comply with the rule or risk losing federal support “to operate the costly exchanges” required under the ACA.
Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach, who led the coalition of states in filing the lawsuit against the federal government, called the court’s decision a “big win for the rule of law.”
The states joining Kansas in the lawsuit are Ohio, Idaho, Nebraska, South Carolina, Alabama, Virginia, Tennessee, Indiana, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, New Hampshire, Kentucky, Texas, Florida, and Arkansas.
A CMS spokesperson told The Epoch Times by email that the agency is reviewing the court’s decision.
The CMS estimated that the rule “could lead to 100,000 previously uninsured DACA recipients enrolling in health care through Marketplaces or a BHP [Basic Health Program].”
But the states argued that expanding ACA coverage to DACA recipients will impose “additional administrative and resource burdens,” as it would allow them access to state-run ACA exchanges.
The DACA initiative was launched by then-President Barack Obama to protect from deportation those who were brought to the United States illegally by their parents as children. The program allowed them to work legally in the country.
However, the “Dreamers” were ineligible for government-subsidized health insurance programs because they did not meet the definition of having a “lawful presence” in the United States.
