People who are immigrants face a variety of systemic barriers to obtaining health coverage. Many have jobs that don’t offer employer-sponsored health coverage or face barriers in obtaining those benefits. Approximately 9.5 million adult immigrants meet income requirements to enroll in Medicaid, but 45% (4.3 million) of them are barred from enrolling due to immigration-related eligibility requirements. While Affordable Care Act marketplaces, like Pennie, have less restrictive immigration-related eligibility requirements than Medicaid, it still blocks those who have an undocumented immigration status from enrolling in coverage. Approximately half of people without a documented status are uninsured. Comprehensive immigration reforms are the pathway to citizenship and could dramatically increase ability to sign up for coverage through employers or through public coverage.
