Feb 19, 2015 • 23M

What Health Care Coverage Do Immigrants Get?: A Conversation with Angel Padilla (February 19th)

 
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David Introcaso, Ph.D.
Podcast interviews with health policy experts on timely subjects. The Healthcare Policy Podcast website features audio interviews with healthcare policy experts on timely topics. An online public forum routinely presenting expert healthcare policy analysis and comment is lacking. While other healthcare policy website programming exists, these typically present vested interest viewpoints or do not combine informed policy analysis with political insight or acumen. Since healthcare policy issues are typically complex, clear, reasoned, dispassionate discussion is required. These podcasts will attempt to fill this void. Among other topics this podcast will address: •Implementation of the Affordable Care Act •Other federal Medicare and state Medicaid health care issues •Federal health care regulatory oversight, moreover CMS and the FDA •Healthcare research •Private sector healthcare delivery reforms including access, reimbursement and quality issues •Public health issues including the social determinates of health Listeners are welcomed to share their program comments and suggest programming ideas. Comments made by the interviewees are strictly their own and do not represent those of their affiliated organization/s.
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Over 20 million immigrants live in the US, approximately half of whom, or 11 million, are undocumented.  Because immigrants are frequently employed in low-wage jobs they largely lack health care coverage.  Legally residing residents are able to acquire coverage via the ACA's state marketplaces however they are typically required to wait five years to apply to qualify for Medicaid. Undocumented immigrants are neither able to buy marketplace coverage even if they pay the full premium nor are they typically allowed Medicaid coverage.   Last November the President announced a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants but whether this will improve their ability to obtain health insurance is unclear.

During this 23-minute discussion Mr. Padilla explains the genesis of the five-year waiting period for legal immigrants to apply for Medicaid, why undocumented immigrants are unable to purchase marketplace insurance at full cost, where (and how) immigrants typically get health care services and moreover what, if any, effect will the President's executive order actions announced last November have in providing health care coverage for undocumented immigrants.      

Angel Padilla is a Health Policy Analyst at the National Immigration Law Center (NILC) where he works to develop and implement NILC's federal immigrant health policy agenda.  Prior to joining the NILC in 2014 he was an immigration policy consultant at the National Council of La Raza.  Prior still he served as a Legislative Assistant to Rep. Luis Guiterrez (D-IL).  Mr. Padilla also interned at the Department of Homeland Security.  He holds an undergraduate degree from the University of California at Berkeley and a graduate degree form the Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Policy.

The National Immigration Law Center website is at: http://www.nilc.org/.

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