Obamacare For Immigrants: Undocumented At Risk Of Losing Health Insurance Over Communication Issues

More than 200,000 immigrants who got health insurance through the Obamacare initiative could now lose it if they fail to present their migration or citizenship documents before September 5. Otherwise, their health care services would be suspended on the 30^th of the same month. The government sent out around 300,000 letters in both, English and Spanish stating these deadlines but authorities from the US Department of Human Health & Services have reported an extremely low response rate. Out of the initial letters sent, over 239,000 have yet to respond, therefore are now getting final notices.

Immigrant defendants claim sending the letters out in just two languages doesn’t really cover all the languages immigrants speak and therefore some have not understood the gravity of the situation, or think they have complied with the requirements and have everything in order. Amy Jones of the Southeast Asian Mutual Assistance Associations Coalition Inc. in Philadelphia, said the letters included a number where individuals could call to get the letter translated for them. However, she suspects, “people have been getting them and throwing them away.” Her agency helped 450 immigrants get health insurance and has been reaching out to all enrollees.

Under the health care law, immigrants who are in the country illegally are not eligible for the program and Florida and Texas are the states with the highest number of health insurance applications with information that conflicts with the immigration and citizenship information on file with the government. Around 100,000 of the letters sent out were to immigrants in Florida, yet two of the largest health advocacy groups in South Florida said they’ve received very few calls to get help.

Users have reported that they continue to receive the letter even though they’ve sent out proper documentation, and worry that they might lose coverage if the government fails to process it on time.