Thread: Illegal immigrants and health care legislation

I don't understand why we can't have a system of verifying who is a citizen and who isn't. Why is this so hard? And why is everybody else's shot at a public option being derailed by this issue?

The Center for Immigration Studies estimates that 7.25 million illegal immigrants do not have health insurance.

Steven Camarota, research director at the non-partisan think tank, said that of those, about 4 million are probably employed -- and that the cost of covering all of them could be in the neighborhood of $8 billion to $12 billion annually.

Those figures are full of variables.

On one hand, it doesn't include the cost of covering children -- which could put the number even higher.

On the other, it assumes all employed illegal immigrants had no public health benefits before and would suddenly max them out in the future. In reality, some of them would have already been funded in part by the public whenever they went to the emergency room. Plus it's unlikely that all 4 million would seek better health care under the new plan because some would be afraid of being caught. And businesses big enough could face a mandate to provide coverage anyway, should they choose to comply. That puts the final number lower.

In addition, many illegal immigrants do pay taxes -- so those individuals would not be getting something for nothing.

I don't see why anyone wanting a public health care access card shouldn't be registered in some form or another. I'd be perfectly willing to have my DNA or fingerprints on file and be subjected to verification as being a citizen in order to get subsidized health care. Whatever it takes. Why are people so weird about their privacy in this?

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009...mployers-hook/

Originally Posted by Blueneck

I don't understand why we can't have a system of verifying who is a citizen and who isn't. Why is this so hard? And why is everybody else's shot at a public option being derailed by this issue?



I don't see why anyone wanting a public health care access card shouldn't be registered in some form or another. I'd be perfectly willing to have my DNA or fingerprints on file and be subjected to verification as being a citizen in order to get subsidized health care. Whatever it takes. Why are people so weird about their privacy in this?

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009...mployers-hook/

The fact that Illegals are going to be given health care along with every American citizen is one of the main reasons Im against Obama's health care reform.

Originally Posted by Blueneck

I don't understand why we can't have a system of verifying who is a citizen and who isn't. Why is this so hard? And why is everybody else's shot at a public option being derailed by this issue?



I don't see why anyone wanting a public health care access card shouldn't be registered in some form or another. I'd be perfectly willing to have my DNA or fingerprints on file and be subjected to verification as being a citizen in order to get subsidized health care. Whatever it takes. Why are people so weird about their privacy in this?

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009...mployers-hook/

Your advocating a national ID card, I bet the powers just luv you. I think it is a shitty idea. Here is the kicker, it doesn't matter, illegals as well with everyone else will have their medical decision in the land of the free.

Originally Posted by Six

The fact that Illegals are going to be given health care along with every American citizen is one of the main reasons Im against Obama's health care reform.

And if it weren't? If there was a way to verify the identity of anyone applying for public health care, what then?