STATEMENT: Congresswoman Delia Ramirez Celebrates President Biden’s Announcement to Expand Health Care for DACA Recipients 

For Immediate Release 

Washington, DC – Congresswoman Delia Ramirez (IL-03), Vice Ranking Member of the Homeland Security Committee, issued the following statement after President Biden announced that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will put forth a regulatory proposal to expand health care enrollment under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace and Medicaid to include Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients: 

“President Biden’s announcement today brings the promise of long-awaited access to affordable health care for the approximately 643,560 DACA recipients and their loved ones,” said Congresswoman Delia Ramirez (IL-03). “I look forward to seeing the details of the proposed regulation and partnering with my colleagues in Congress and at every level of government to support the most robust, inclusive implementation. DACA recipients, which includes my husband Boris, collectively pay more than $6 billion in federal taxes annually. They’re teachers and health care workers. They’re parents and community volunteers. The DACA community is vastly diverse and they are all unmistakably integral members of our communities. It was always wrong that they weren’t afforded health care access to begin with. 

That’s why I led the now-enacted state legislation in the Illinois House of Representatives to make Illinois the first state to provide Medicaid regardless of immigration status. There is absolutely no reason why, in the richest country in the world, we don’t ensure all people can access quality health care regardless of their ability to pay and regardless of their status. The financial hardship that comes without access to health care for DACA recipients is compounded by the lack of access to many other resources and supports limited to only U.S. citizens. This inequity results in higher health risks and bigger hospital bills as Dreamers hold off from going to the doctor as much as possible because they simply cannot afford to pay out of pocket, until the situation becomes dire and life-threatening in many instances. 

We are long overdue on making good on our promise to Dreamers, which includes a pathway to citizenship, but it must also address the health care, housing, education, and workplace inequalities that continue to harm DACA recipients and all undocumented immigrants. The announcement of a proposed HHS rule is a historic victory. To all immigrants, to all their families and loved ones, to all the advocates, your voices are being heard and it is your collective efforts over many years that has brought us here today.” 

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