Protect Health Care
for Immigrant Families
Medicaid policy is changing, putting health care for millions at risk. Because immigrant families face unique obstacles, PIF is working to advocate for immigrant-inclusive policy and arm families with the information they need to take charge of their health care. Join us to help protect families in your community.
Community Outreach Resources | Resources for Policy Advocacy |
Immigrant Families at Risk
COVID-19 response legislation enacted in 2020 sharply increased federal funding for state Medicaid programs. The law also required states to keep Medicaid beneficiaries insured until the end of the pandemic public health emergency. That requirement is ending, and states will begin re-assessing Medicaid eligibility in April 2023 – a process sometimes described as “unwinding” the continuous coverage policy. The federal government estimates that millions of people will become uninsured – especially people who have never renewed Medicaid coverage before and people who have moved since 2020.
Immigrant families face additional obstacles to remaining covered:
- Language barriers when information is provided only in English
- Misinformation about immigration status and Medicaid eligibility
- Misunderstanding that using Medicaid will compromise future immigration applications
- Concerns about providing personal information to a government agency
- Concerns that Medicaid agencies will share information with immigration officials
Help Families in Your Community
Close the Information Gap
We can all help to lower these barriers and keep immigrant families covered. This sample one-pager includes accurate, accessible information you can share with immigrant families in your community. Or you can use this link to create an editable version, so you can add contact information, add your logo and colors (though we ask that you also include the PIF logo), or tweak the language.
You can also help spread the word through social media. Just click here to retweet a post sharing key information families need to know.
Push Policymakers for a Plan to Protect Families
As the flyer notes, federal law requires states to adopt transition plans that minimize health insurance coverage losses. We’ve created a Medicaid Unwinding Checklist for State Advocates with detailed background and guidance for policy reforms that protect immigrant families before, during, and after your state begins re-assessing Medicaid eligibility.
Social media can also be helpful in drawing policymakers’ attention to this important issue. Click here to retweet a post summarizing policy reforms that can protect immigrant families.