Health Insurance for Legal Immigrants

Health Insurance for Legal Immigrants

It was December 29, 2008 at 1:30 p.m. when my father arrived at O’Hare International airport in Chicago from the Philippines. My father’s arrival marked the end of a long immigration process, but I didn’t know that it would also be the start of the aggravation in looking for his health insurance.

Upon my father’s arrival, I learned that legal immigrants, also known as lawful permanent residents in the United States who are green card holders were not able to have access to private healthcare of at least six months from entry, and they had to wait for two years. This seemed to be an amazing discovery to me. Although they are immigrants from another country, they too have the right to be healthy, to protect themselves and their petitioners financially in the event of something catastrophic happening, and live with peace of mind knowing that they are protected.

“Health is Wealth.” That is what our family doctor, Dr. Paul Bulow keeps reminding me every time I visit him for something minor that I could have taken care of myself. Health is everything. When one is healthy, he or she can fulfill his or her duties to the family. He can go to work and at work perform his job correctly. At the end of the day, he can come home to a healthy family, and the next day went the same, but that would be in a perfect world. It is inevitable that one gets sick, and that is why we all need health insurance. Unfortunately, not all residents here in the US have access to health insurance especially the lawful permanent residents after entry. That is why there are a “Few plans aimed at facilitating universal coverage make any mention of increasing access for uninsured non-citizen living in the US, many of whom are legally restricted from certain types of coverage” (Nandi, Loue and Galea). If legal immigrants are given access to private insurance then it will protect all the Americans, in one way or another, because if one is unhealthy, we would all be affected, US citizens or not.

We all know that the United States comprises immigrants from different countries and different walks of life. “The actual annual level of immigration averaged about 1.8 million between fiscal year 2002 and 2006” (Migration Policy Institute). It is undeniable that immigrants are flocking to the United States. They are “seeking free choice of worship, escape from cruel governments, and relief from war, famine, or poverty. All came with dreams of a better life for themselves and their families…” (Becker). With that many lawful permanent residents coming in the country annually, it is sad that they don’t have any health insurance by choice, or they could not get one.

My dad is 60 years old, and he runs and eats healthy everyday; however, he has hypertension that had been controlled by a medication. Since he got here, he had seen a doctor. He just had his blood test and everything came out negative. My dad’s cholesterol is normal for his age, and his sugar was just right. On his sixth month here, I applied my dad his own health insurance. After going through all the process and after being charged for two months in advance, the company denied him because they said he had hypertension. We searched for a different insurance company only to find out that the rest of them required two years of residency. He is fairly healthy, so technically, he shouldn’t have a hard time looking for a health insurance, but we did.

What I find ironic is “four-in-ten (41%) non-citizen, non-legal permanent residents Hispanics states that their usual provider is a community clinic or health center. These centers are designed primarily as “safety nets” for vulnerable populations and are funded by a variety of sources, including the federal government, state governments and private foundations...” (Livingston). However, if I were to take my father to one of those community clinics or health centers, a bill would be mailed to us after his visit.

There is a strict rule that US citizens and legal immigrants had to follow pertaining to bringing someone in the United States from another country. They have to go through a stringent immigration process. The US citizen or the legal immigrant could petition qualified dependents to come over, but before everything gets processed, it has to go through the approval of the US Citizenship and Immigration Services. Petitioners have to submit their income tax and once approved, they are asked to sign an affidavit of support to ensure that the beneficiary will not be a public charge.

“Affidavits of Support are submitted by sponsors on behalf of most family-based and some employment-based immigrants. The final rule makes the affidavit of support process less burdensome for sponsors while continuing to ensure that each intending immigrant has a sponsor who has sufficient income and/or assets to support the sponsored immigrant(s). The Affidavit of Support also allows a sponsored intending immigrant to establish that he or she is not likely to become a public charge (e.g., receive certain federal or state means-tested benefits)” according to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). So, my point is, my father who is a lawful permanent resident will be charged for using government-funded healthcare, but illegal immigrants could use the services for free.

When I petitioned my father to join us here in 2006, I never imagined that it would be this hard to get him health insurance. Just like any other person here in the United States, he needed health insurance. We both came from a country where only rich people could afford health insurance. Because poor people could not afford it, I had seen them being denied healthcare. Before one could be admitted to a hospital, he or she had to pay 10% of the total cost. If one couldn’t provide the payment, then either he or she would get the least priority until that person died. It seems extremely unfortunate, but over there, one doesn’t have any choice.

Here in America, the problems with care for those who cannot afford it seem similar. The increasing cost of healthcare is overwhelming especially to those who don’t have health insurance. It worries me all the time where am I going to get the money to pay for the hospital bills in case something catastrophic would happen to my dad. Additionally, I don’t want to put my family in jeopardy. That is why I wanted him to have his own health insurance to protect him and to protect us as well.

The issue of cost for hospital stay is a major issue facing many in this country. “From 1997 to 2006 hospital charges for the uninsured grew by 76% percent from an average of $11,000 to $19,400 per stay (after adjusting the inflation). Meanwhile, the estimated hospital costs of providing care also increased for the uninsured, but at a slow rate of about 33 perfect, from $5,100 to $6,000 per stay. Despite these increases in hospital charges and costs, the average length of time uninsured patients stayed at the hospital remained steady at about four days per stay” (U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics). With that much amount needed, it would take years and years to finally be able to pay it off.

Sadly, there are an increasing number of people in the United States without health insurance. One good example is the story of Cara Wilder. She was laid off from work and a single mother of two, who couldn’t afford to pay a health insurance for everybody, so she made sure that her children would have theirs through Medicaid. According to her, “I had never gone without coverage myself so I am pretty scared at the moment….If anything catastrophic God forbid would happen right now, I don’t know… I don’t know. Probably declare bankruptcy and not be able to pay it” (Osbone). In the same way, I don’t want to put my family or myself in that situation. I want to be certain about the future. My dad needs his health insurance.

Another interesting reality that I noticed for the short period of time that I have lived here in the United States, I am surprised to see a lot of older people. It must have something to do with having the peace of mind which allowed them to enjoy and live life to the fullest. They didn’t have to worry about their health insurance and the uncertainty of the future. That is the reason why according to the United Nations Population Division, The 2000 Revision, “life expectancy in the US is 77 years old and 70 years old in the Philippines”.

In the Philippines, it was hard not to worry about one’s health especially when there were a lot of people around that got sick. There was always that doubt of who would be next, or if he or she would have the money to pay for the hospital in case something happens. For example, my brother was riding his bike on his way home from school. Someone who was driving a truck and drunk at the same time hit my brother, and he left him on the side of the street. Luckily, he was caught, but he didn’t help us with the hospital bills. Good thing it wasn’t major, but we didn’t have insurance. My father borrowed money from his job, and it took us many years to pay if back. His company did payroll deduction, so it surely hurt our finances.

As unfortunate as it is, people are experiencing the same thing here in the US. Most people are living from paycheck to paycheck and could not afford health insurance. Not having one is such a gamble that if something happens, the only option would be paying the bill out of pocket and paying it back little by little. It is understandable that this situation happens in the Philippines because it is a developing country, and it doesn’t have the resources to support and help its people but the United States does.

For this reason, I strongly suggest that, first; the government should penalize private insurance companies who require residency to up to two years for legal immigrant applicants. If the applicant is willing to pay every month for their premium, and they are fairly healthy, then there is no reason for them not to be allowed to get their health insurance. Most of those lawful permanent residents including their petitioners are only trying to protect themselves.

The government is starting to address this issue. According to James R. Edwards Jr., a fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies, “The Finance Committee, like HELP and the House bills, mandates individuals must carry health insurance or else face a fine. It sets up a system where you’ve got Americans and legal immigrants who have to have coverage or else pay a fine” (qtd. in Starr). In this case, it would be a lot easier for legal immigrants to obtain private health insurance, and if they don’t have one because they were denied, then these private health insurance companies will have to face the consequences and even be fined.

Second, the government should offer an alternative insurance or an easier way to obtain health insurance for legal immigrants, who do not have any options where they could pay premium every month without the hassle. This is where “Health Insurance Exchange” comes into play. Health Insurance Exchange according to President Obama is “a market where Americans can one-stop shop for a health care plan, compare benefits and prices, and choose the plans that’s best for them. None of these plans should deny coverage on the basis of a preexisting condition, and all of these plans should include affordable basic benefit package that includes prevention, and protection against catastrophic costs” (Hass). With the health insurance exchange in mind, it would be easier for legal immigrants to obtain health insurance that is within their budget, and they could also shop, compare, and take advantage of it without any waiting period.

Third, legal immigrants should be able to use public healthcare facilities through their private health insurance. “All legal immigrants are eligible for government subsidies to buy insurance on the exchange, but immigrants who have been in the country for less than five years would remain barred by existing law from enrolling in Medicaid and Medicare” (Thompson). As long as my father has his own health insurance through the health insurance exchange, then we can manage with or without government help, so we don’t have to worry about paying for his future health related expenses out of pocket.

Health care for legal immigrants is sadly overlooked, and the government needs to do something about it right now. We need health reform for the legal immigrants and a change in the way health insurance issuance is administered among immigrants to keep them healthy, protected financially, and as a result live with peace of mind. After all, they also deserve healthcare just like the rest of us.


Work Cited:
Becker, Cynthia. “Immigration – Almost Four Hundred Years of American History.”
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“Consumer Price Index All Urban Consumer.” U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor
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Hass, Christopher. “President Obama Reiterates Support for Public Option and Health

Insurance Exchange.” Organizing for America. 3 June 2009. Web. 29 Nov. 2009.

Livingston, Gretchen. “Hispanics, Health Insurance and Health Care Access.” Pew Research
Center Publications. 25 Sept. 2009. Web. 7 Nov. 2009.

Migration Policy Institute. “Annual Immigration to the United States: The Real Numbers.” May
2007. Web. 10 Nov. 2009.

Nandi, Arijit, Sana Loue, and Sandro Galea "Expanding the Universe of Universal Coverage:
The Population Health Argument for Increasing Coverage for Immigrants." Journal of
Immigrant & Minority Health 11.6 (2009): 433-436. Academic Search Complete.
EBSCO. Web. 14 Nov. 2009.

Starr, Penny. “Health Care Reform Bill Would Not Verify Citizenship Status of Beneficiaries,
Conservatives Analysts Say.” CNS News.com. 20 Aug. 2009. Web. 29 Nov. 2009.

“The Social Well-Being in the Country.” Philippines.hvu.nl. United Nations Population
Division, The 2000 Revision, n.p. n.d. Web. 13 Nov. 2009.

Thompson, Krissah. “Initially waved off, Hispanic advocates jump into health debate.” The
Washington Post. 12 Nov. 2009. Web. 30 Nov. 2009.


US Citizenship and Immigration Service. “USCIS Issues Finals Rule Regarding
Affidavits of Supports.” Press Office US Department of Homeland Security. 21 June
2006. Web. 13 Nov. 2009.

Wilder, Cara. Interview by Janie Osbome. “A Safety for the children.” The New York Times.
2 Nov. 2009. Web. 13 Nov. 2009.