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Dreamers in these 19 states will no longer be able to enroll in Obamacare
A federal judge has blocked coverage under the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare, for Dreamers in 19 Republican states.
The Biden Administration has passed a rule allowing DACA recipients to sign up for health insurance through the Affordable Care Act, popularly known as Obamacare. However, on December 10, Dan Traynor, a federal judge in North Dakota, blocked the rule prohibiting children brought to the United States as children without legal residency from accessing the healthcare market.
Traynor ruled in favor of a group of 19 Republican attorneys general who filed a lawsuit last August seeking to block the measure from taking effect. The judge argued that the rule violates a law passed by Congress that prohibits undocumented residents from receiving public benefits.
Obamacare enrollment for Dreamers opened on November 1, and coverage was set to go into effect on January 1, 2025. However, Judge Traynor’s ruling blocked the measure, leaving Dreamers vulnerable to losing going without coverage.
“Big win for the rule of law. Congress never intended that illegal aliens should receive Obama care benefits. Indeed, two laws prohibit them from receiving such benefits,” Kris Kobach, the Kansas attorney general, wrote via social media.
What a second Trump administration means for the Dreamers
According to official information, the states that signed onto the lawsuit were Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.
This means that immigrants with illegal status will not be able to obtain government-sponsored health insurance. Instead, they will be forced to get it through their employers, state programs, or community clinics.
President-elect Donald Trump stated that he would commence deportations immediately after taking office. He reiterated that plan during his first interview since winning in November, which took place earlier this week. However, when asked directly about what his plans meant for Dreamers, he expressed interest in working out a compromise regarding the Dreamers with Congressional Democrats. It is uncertain how far he is willing to go to reach an agreement. Additionally, the Democrats, who shifted right during the election in a failed bid to attract moderate voters, may be hesitant to expend their political capital to protect the Dreamers. Such a decision could further erode their coalition, which strongly supports a path to citizenship for children brought to the US as a country and who haven’t lived anywhere else.
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