Posted on 05/11/2003 2:54:34 PM PDT by JackelopeBreeder
Los Angeles County spent about $350 million last year providing health care to illegal immigrants, according to a report from the Department of Health Services.
The money spent could have staved off massive cuts to the departments including the closure of 16 health clinics and possibly two hospitals, as well as slashes in services across the board, officials said Friday.
As a result, county Supervisor Michael Antonovich is pushing for measures he believes would control the cost and discourage illegal immigration.
On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors is expected to vote on a plan to create a work permit for Mexicans to come to Los Angeles County for a certain period of time for a certain job.
The ordinance which Antonovich said would need an additional OK from Congress would require would-be employers to put up an insurance bond for each worker to guarantee payment of any needed health-care services.
"Illegal immigrants have impacted our county taxpayers,' Antonovich said. "We have a $350 million debt as a result of these people receiving medical treatment illegally.'
There are also plans, he said, to eliminate all nonemergency services to people who don't live in Los Angeles County.
Immigration attorney Margherita Underhill said she is empathetic to the county's task of trying to balance the health department's budget and care for a growing uninsured, and immigrant, population.
Still, she is not convinced the work permit is the answer. She said it it does not appear to address a large percentage who end up working for themselves.
"We need to consider the self-employed, which are a majority of the illegals,' Underhill said. "These are the people who are selling oranges on the street, that mow our lawns, that clean our houses and take care of our elderly.'
County health officials say they are not allowed to ask patients about their citizenship status. Rather, they estimated the amount of money spent on undocumented workers last year using a formula based on how many undocumented people they believe live in the county and how many doctor and hospital visits were not reimbursed.
"We also looked at the number of people who have been denied medical benefits,' county health department spokesman John Wallace said. "We get them signed up for medical benefits, but a certain number got rejected because they had no proof of citizenship.'
Above the $350 million, the county also spent an unconfirmed amount of money on various emergency and pregnancy-related services, which are reimbursed, he said.
Antonovich and other members of the Board of Supervisors met with lawmakers this week in Washington, D.C., to discuss various budget and health crises. Included, he said, was a discussion to create health centers on both sides of the border as a means of preventing illegal immigration or abuse of the county's health-care system.
"Here we have the ability to have American and Mexican medical personnel side by side training our health professionals, while treating those in dire need,' Antonovich said. "It would be an incentive to treat and a disincentive for people to come to Los Angeles County for free medical care.'
The supervisor said he received bipartisan support for his idea and is confident the Bush administration might take soon take up the issue.
It's also a concept Underhill said she would support.
The county's reason for being is to provide care to the indigent and uninsured a number officials say is skyrocketing, while state and federal reimbursement is dwindling.
According to a Health Department report in 1990-1991, the county spent roughly $143.4 million to treat undocumented workers. That number has jumped nearly 240 percent, Antonovich said.
Wallace said the department obviously would be in a better financial state if it could reduce the number of services that don't get reimbursed. However, the county's mandate is to treat everyone in need.
The Board of Supervisors has "to make a policy call on the public health implications of denying people care,' he said. "And having a health facility open (to all) regardless of their residency status is helpful in controlling communicable diseases (and this) is one of the things you have to weigh in making a decision about who you serve and who you don't.'
California voted for and passed Proposition 187, three to one in support a decade ago. We won big.
The proposition would have eliminated most all tax paid support of illegal aliens.
The Federal government stepped in and told the people of California to go to hell, they burned our ballots and declared our free election illegal.
The government will continiue to debate and talk about this issue until the United States is on the same level as most garden varity third world countries.
American citizens are being FORCED to pay for hundreds of thousands of these criminals and this titanic lawlessness, while our local, state, and federal politicians, continue to stand around and talk about this, while confiscating your hard earned money to pay for this nation wide lawlessness.
But if you fail to pay that parking fine, or send in your taxes late, they will be coming after you. Bet the rent. You will be threatened with fines, jail, or worse.
America refuses to wake the hell up.
The government attack on the American people, and the invasion of our borders continues to escalate, while government forces the American citizens to pay for it, or else.
Usually don't pick on you but this is a gross simplification.
Prop 187 passed (as you represented) under a Republican watch. The law was immediately challeneged in federal court by immigration rights groups. These groups went venue shopping and came up with a very liberal federal judge in LA. The judge did his liberal thing and ruled that two of the several provisions of Proposition infringed on federal rights and placed a stay on the law pending review.
Governor Wilson was then advised by the RNC and his own state party leaders that to pursue the matter to the 9th Circuit and on to the SCOTUS would harm Republican chances in the next election cycle in California and Wilson backed off pursuing the matter through the appalent process. The Proposition languished in the federal courthouse in Los Angeles until Davis won the election in November 1998.
Three months after he was elected to his first term, Governor Davis met with a hodge podge of civil and immigrants rights groups in San Franciso. Wilson agreed in writing that he would not pursue the earlier federal decision in return for the political support of these groups during his first term in office.
Davis' ability to unilaterally nullify the people's will is legally questioned and many constitutional scholars are certain that many provisions of Proposition 187 would withstand SCOTUS review. Since Davis' legally questionable action, no Republican candidate for governor has be willing to support a court review of 187 should they be elected. 187 represents the true third rail in California politics as Hispanics become the majority population in California (Hispanics became the majority of births in the state in March 2003).
In summary while a federal judge did place a stay on the Proposition it was governor Davis' decision not to pursue the matter furthter. The review of this Propostion can be reinitiated at any time but thus far no California Republican gubernatorial candidate has pledge to do so. Most have run away from even a mention of the Proposition for fear of alienating the Hispanic vote. This is ironic since the Proposition passed by larger majorities than the state average in many Hispanic districts.
On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors is expected to vote on a plan to create a work permit for Mexicans to come to Los Angeles County for a certain period of time for a certain job.
How would this ever be enforcable on a large enough scale?
The ordinance which Antonovich said would need an additional OK from Congress…
I hope he doesn’t plan to hold his breath while waiting for that to happen.
…would require would-be employers to put up an insurance bond for each worker to guarantee payment of any needed health-care services.
Right. The employer will admit in writing that he’s hiring illegal labor and open himself to Federal charges.
"We need to consider the self-employed, which are a majority of the illegals,' Underhill said. "These are the people who are selling oranges on the street, that mow our lawns, that clean our houses and take care of our elderly.”
Bingo! Most of these people are below the radar screen and want to stay that way until the next possible amnesty. They’re illegal.
There are also plans, he said, to eliminate all nonemergency services to people who don't live in Los Angeles County.
Translation: A legal citizen in an adjacent rural county would be denied treatment in the big city hospitals.
Sure, and I've got two skyscrapers I can sell you in downtown Manhattan...
My post was right on the mark
Regardless of what damn government, be it local, federal or state, stepped in and declared our free election illegal. What happened to our rights? What happen to majority rules? The the majority of Californians spoke loud and clear, only to have Federal government intrude and declare our election illegal.
We won the election fair and square.
Is this simplified? Yep, and that's exactly what happened, plain and simple, no matter how anyone dances around it.
We won by a large majority of the citizens, a simple concept, and we were denied.
And to this day, literally millions of illegal aliens continue to pour in and invade, not just California, but almost every single state in this country. We tried to set things straight here, government would not allow it. The results following this event, are inordinately clear.
In case you've missed it , we are becoming a Banana republic
I don't believe that is true. It is against the law here to ask about citizenship. The medical facilities can't ask, the schools can't ask, etc. Emergency rooms are filled to the brim with illegals coming in with non-emergency conditions, and they can't be turned away, it's against the law.
The same person who has been mowing it for the last 15 years, ME!
False. Democracty works. You don't have the votes, Mr. Less than One Percent.
The Federal government stepped in and told the people of California to go to hell, they burned our ballots and declared our free election illegal.
No, they said it was unconstitutional. Huge difference.
The government attack on the American people...
Pfffft!
lmao!
That's my point Joe. It wasn't
The act was the extraconstitutional act of an individual. Davis, without the legal authority, without public notice, at a secret meeting, simply dealt away the vote of the people.
Whose fault is that? Our's; your's and mine.
Ancedotally I did nothing, other than to bitch on this forum, when the facts were finally uncovered in 2000. Neither did other conservatives nor our elected, conservative representatives. What did you do when you became aware of Davis' actions?
There is a ray of light however. Today, a legitimate government body is openly discussing the effects of Davis' subterfuge and a legitimate newspaper is reporting the debate.
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