TOPEKA (KSNT) - Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach has filed a lawsuit against the Biden-Harris administration to stop people living in the U.S. illegally from getting Obamacare.
The complaint challenges a rule expanding the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) definition of individuals "lawfully present" in the United States to include Deferred Action for Childhood (DACA) arrivals.
“The Biden-Harris Administration believes health care is a right, not a privilege, and that extends to DACA recipients who have built their lives in the United States,” said CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure. “Today’s rule reduces barriers for DACA recipients to obtain health care coverage and is a vital step toward making certain that it is available and accessible to all Americans.”
Kobach is being joined by state attorneys general from Alabama, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee and Virginia. According to the press release from Kobach's office, more than 200,000 DACA recipients, including 4,350 recipients in Kansas, would be eligible for taxpayer-subsidized health plans.
"Illegal aliens shouldn't get a free pass into our country," Kobach said. "They shouldn't receive taxpayer benefits when they arrive, and the Biden-Harris administration shouldn't get a free pass to violate federal law. That's why I am leading a multistate lawsuit to stop this illegal regulation from going into effect."
The complaint filed by the attorneys general claims federal law prevents giving public benefits to people living in the U.S. illegally. They say it violates the language in the Affordable Care Act and under Obamacare.
"In the ACA, Congress limited eligibility to participate in a qualified health plan through a subsidized health exchange to citizens or nationals of the United States and individuals 'lawfully present' in the United States," the complaint reads.
You can read the full complaint by clicking here or checking out the document below:
Daca Obamacare Complaint 8-8-24 by Matthew Self on Scribd
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