Posted on 01/10/2008 6:57:58 AM PST by JohnRand
I often hear numbers ranging from 14 million to 20 million illegal aliens in America. I also often hear numbers ranging from 40 million to 45 million uninsured people in America. Is it safe to say that 14 million of the 40 million uninsured are illegal aliens? If so, does anyone know where I might find data to back up that argument besides just my gut feeling? Any help would be most appreciated!
Immigrants Represent Most of Rise in Numbers of Uninsured By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, Los Angeles Times, Dateline Washington, June 14, 2005
Immigrants account for most of the increases in U.S. residents without health insurance, according to a study by the Employee Benefit Research Institute.
While the study did not distinguish between illegal and legal immigrants, estimates are that at least a quarter of all immigrants are undocumented, most from Mexico.
According to Paul Fronstin, director of health research at the Employee Benefit Research Institute, immigrants are likely to be uninsured because "they are disproportionately employed by small businesses. They are uninsured because they have service and agricultural jobs that are less likely to come with benefits."
U.S. hospitals often end up absorbing the costs of caring for uninsured immigrants, because they are required to provide emergency room care to all.
U.S. Is Linking Status of Aliens to Hospital Aid By Robert Pear, The New York Times, Dateline Washington, August 10, 2004
In a new program created under the 2003 Medicare law, the U.S. federal government is offering $1 billion to U.S. hospitals that provide emergency care for illegal immigrants. But to collect the money, the hospitals will be required to provide documentation about their patients' immigration status.
U.S. federal health officials maintain that the information is necessary to make sure the money will be used as Congress intended; that is, for "emergency health services furnished to undocumented aliens."
Some hospital officials are balking at the requirement. They say collecting the information will be difficult, administratively expensive, and may pose a public health problem if the requirements scare off illegals needing care. For example, the foreign-born population accounted for over 50 percent of the new tuberculosis cases reported in 2003, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A 1986 federal law requires hospitals to provide treatment to patients in their emergency rooms, regardless of the patients' ability to pay. But uninsured illegal immigrants have created significant financial burdens on hospitals, especially those located in border states like Texas, Arizona, California, and in states like New York, Illinois and Florida, where many illegal immigrants work and reside.
Over 90% of young adults age 18 to 42 never see a doctor - what the government wants to do is force them to pay 200.00 a month for someone else.
What percentage of illegal aliens would you assume to be uninsured? (Simply stating that in order for you to keep track of your assumptions).
Don’t forget the millions of anchor babies that belong to those millions of illegals. Added together, they may represent the majority of uninsured.
Anchor babies get Medicaid. So are they insured, not not?
I have heard that there are actually 30 million illegal aliens. which would make only 15 millin citizens uninsured. They throw out OLD numbers out there to make it sound like there isn’t so many of these guys here. There are EMPTY towns in Mexico, and towns where only infants and senior citizens reside waiting for their money to come in from their relatives who have gone to the Norther Frontier to support them.
Perfect! Thank you!
I wonder what percentage of that 44 million young (under 25) adults are?
Good point. When counting this 40-45 million, I don’t know if it includes medi-care, etc.
Everyone here legally who qualifies by age for Medicare is considered to be covered. So only the elderly illegals would be counted among the uninsured. Interesting note: legal immigrants are allowed to sponsor in their elderly parents and sign them up for SSI, which is Social Security for people who never paid into the SS system. Once enrolled in SSI, they qualify for Medicare. America’s retirement plan for the entire world.
Census Bureau report “Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2005,” puts the initial number of uninsured people living in the country at 46.577 million.
A closer look at that report reveals the Census data include 9.487 million people who are “not a citizen.” Subtracting the 10 million non-Americans, the number of uninsured Americans falls to roughly 37 million.
Government statistics also show 45 percent of those without insurance will have insurance again within four months after job transitions.
That’s 20.25 Million in transition between jobs who will have insurance.
So now we’re down to 17 Million without health insurance.
AND remember that according to the Census report, there are 8.3 million uninsured people who make between $50,000 and $74,999 per year and 8.74 million who make more than $75,000 a year.
That’s roughly 17 million people who ought to be able to “afford” health insurance because they make substantially more than the median household income of $46,326.
How many of them are young and healthy and choose not to insure???
Insurance isn’t needed for FReebies. Blackbird.
THe thing I hate about free healthcare for all is that once its available it becomes abused by everybody with a headache and a blotchy piece of skin that is nothing more than a coffee stain that didnt come off in the first wash. So what starts out at 200 a month suddenlt becomes 400 a month to pay for those who don’t pay for it and those that do who abuse it.
You always get more of what you reward.
The thing about free health care is I don’t know of any doctors or nurses that work for free.
That makes it sound as though only the group insurances are actually counted as insured.
While visiting my younger brother over the holiday, he’s 38, he tells me he has no health insurance on hisself. He earned over $200k last year, has 3 fairly new vehicles, 1 is 04 and 2 are 05. Wife has insurance through her job. He can well afford it but chooses not to buy it. With his 1st child due in March, he says he will buy then. I’m sure there are millions just like him.
I also believe health care is a local issue for states. Not the federal government. In fact, the only constitutional aspect the federal government could have would be transportability across state lines.
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