Public Charge Final Rule: Frequently Asked Questions
Patricia Boozang, Alice Lam, Allison Orris, and Elizabeth Dervan, Manatt Health
On August 14, 2019, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) publisheda final rule, Inadmissibility on Public Charge Grounds. The rule makes significant changes to the standards DHS will use to determine whether an immigrant is likely to become a “public charge”—a person dependent on the government for support—which will have consequences for certain immigrants’ legal status.
In October 2019, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s State Health and Value Strategies program hosted awebinarabout the final rule, focusing in particular on how it could impact immigrants’ use of Medicaid and other health benefits. This document provides answers to frequently asked questions—including a number of questions raised during the webinar—about whom the rule will impact, what benefits are implicated by the rule, and how the rule might be administered.
Although the rule was originally scheduled to take effect on October 15, 2019, multiple preliminary injunctions issued by federal courts across the country blocked the rule last fall. A pair of decisions by the Supreme Court permitted the rule to go into effect nationwide on February 24. This document has been updated as of February 26, 2020 to reflect the most current information.
Ensuring affordable health coverage and healthcare for immigrant populations in the United States is critical to advancing health equity. In a new series, State Health and Value Strategies (SHVS), with support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, highlights strategies for states to expand affordable health coverage to immigrant populations in the United States. This expert perspective provides an overview of the products included in the series.
On September 8, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a final rule on the “Public Charge Ground of Inadmissibility,” regarding DHS’ authority to refuse a noncitizen’s application for admission or application for visa adjustment (including receipt of a green card) on grounds that they are “likely at any time to become a public charge.” This expert perspective provides an overview of the final rule.
This expert perspective provides an overview of the eligibility and enrollment proposed rule released by CMS on August 31 and details how the proposed rule seeks to strengthen existing eligibility, enrollment, and renewal operational processes in an effort to close gaps in coverage and extend best practices identified by CMS and states in the course of preparing for unwinding the federal public health emergency (PHE). Comments on the proposed rule are due no later than November 7, 2022.
