Anti-Immigrant Hysteria Will Block Black Access to Health Care
In an attempt to placate House Representatives associated with the extremist House Immigration Reform Caucus who are looking for a reason to oppose health care, Congress has put African Americans at risk. It is not the role of Congress to promote anti-immigrant bigotry and further disenfranchise African Americans. It is a false remedy with serious side effects and must be rejected.
Under [H.R. 3200]--America's Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009- millions of African Americans could potentially be denied Federal payments for affordability credits. H.R. 3200, SEC. 246 (No Federation Payment for Undocumented Aliens) reads:
Nothing in this subtitle shall allow Federal payments for the affordability credits on behalf of individuals who are not lawfully present in the United States.
Neither SEC. 246 nor H.R. 3200 responds to the reality that 8.9 percent (or roughly 2 million) of all African Americans in the U.S. do not have a Social Security card, driver's license, passport, birth certificate, or other proof of naturalization, and would thereby be excluded from accessing Federal payments for affordability credits.
A 2006 study by the Brennan Center for Justice found that African-Americans were more than three times as likely as Caucasians to lack a government-issued photo ID, with one in four African Americans possessing no such ID. In 2006 the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities highlighted that 8.9 percent, roughly 2 million African Americans don't have a Social Security card, driver's license, passport, birth certificate, or proof of naturalization.
In 1950, Sam Shapiro, now Emeritus Professor of Health Policy and Management at the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health, conducted a case study for the journal Population Studies, and found that, due to segregation barring black children from being born in white hospitals, one-fifth of African Americans born from 1939-40 were never issued birth certificates.
It is important to note that the segregation of hospitals did not end until well into the 1960s. Segregation in Greensboro, North Carolina hospitals, for example, did not end until 1963, and as of June 23, 1966, only 20 percent of Mississippi's hospitals had been desegregated. By February 1967 less than half of all Mississippi hospitals had been desegregated, and by October 1969 the number had risen to only 78%.
Laws that have required proof of citizenship have been shown to have a significant negative impact on the African American community. Most recently, Tim Vercellotti, a professor at Rutgers University, found that 5.7% of African Americans are less likely to vote in states that require voter identification.
The phrase "first, do no harm" is often attributed to the Hippocratic Oath that doctors swear to before practicing medicine on patients. As Congress moves forward to address America's failing health care system they would do well to reflect on this saying over the coming weeks.
The phrase is 'paper genocide'. If you cannot produce paper documents proving you exist, well then, apparently, you do not exist....even though you're standing right in front of everyone big as life.
Native Americans run into this same dilemma, Eric. It will be interesting how Congress will go about dealing with this phenomena. Overlooking millions of taxpaying citizens cannot and should not be tolerated.
October 26, 2009 11:54 AM | Reply | Permalink
Good point, and I'm not sure how the problem can be fixed. But still, it would be great if we could get this back-burner problem for African Americans, Native Americans, and Hispanic Americans out of the shadows as an ancillary benefit of health care reform.
But the problem has to be noticed to be fixed. Since we see that HCR seems to be going forward, maybe it's now time to remind our representatives that it won't work if it forgets many real Americans.
October 26, 2009 7:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
The stats are amazing, Eric. The black-only hospitals was, I confess, revelatory. Even the fact that you can register a birth by yourself at the county wasn't a cure. One might ask why should we do that?
The other reasons that that amendment cannot stand is the utter impracticality of always holding an ID just in case you might have to get hospitalized, and that if you don't have a copy of your birth certificate, it takes money and lots of time to order them out of state bureaus of vital statistics. How absurd and vengeful an amendment it is. Another way of placating those Republicans, etc. who aren't going to vote for any HRC anyway.
The same problems come into play for the idea of a national ID card; Brrrrr!
October 26, 2009 4:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'm sorry...I'm not seeing your issues with this. If they are citizens, then they should have some form of ID. You get the paperwork for a birth certificate and a SS number before you leave the hospital as an infant. At 16, you can get a license. Worst comes to worst, you can get a standard ID. If they don't do it, it's their fault. It's their own laziness and irresponsibility. The government isn't blocking them from anything, them not taking care of business is.
That said, your title is wildly inaccurate. The provision blocks access to getting help with insurance payments, not health care over all. They can still pay for their own, or run to the ER every time they sniffle, like most people without insurance already do.
I'm not sure what your stats on segregation have to do with anything. It's not still legal, obviously, and there's been plenty of time for the mistakes to be remedied.
It's not wrong. It's common sense. People in this country illegally have no business getting any more handouts than they already are. People who are citizens should have ample proof of the fact. How about instead of crying foul and making excuses for lazy people, you do something about the fact that they don't seem to want to take care of themselves? Make this a well known fact. Maybe it'll motivate people more.
Either way, it's not the government's job to hand-hold people. And it's not the government's fault that these people are less likely to have ID. Don't turn a much needed provision into a huge negative simply because a certain group can't take care of their own obligations.
October 26, 2009 5:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
As per your usual . . .
You're as full of crap as a Christmas Goose ... with the perception of reality of that of a rock.
Now isn't there a World of WarCraft to go play or some brass that needs polishing, or a pair of boots needing some spit shining?
Sheesh...
~OGD~
October 26, 2009 6:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
Wow OldenGoldenDecoy I'm very impressed by your ability to actually discuss a post. Not quite at the level of a five year old but if you keep playing World of WarCraft I'm sure that you will eventually reach that level of maturity.
My boots are in the closet and I prefer two coats. On your way out the door be sure not to let the door hit you in the "brass"!
October 26, 2009 6:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
Kuyleh,
I wish that you had actually taken the time to read the blog before writing you comment. If you had you would have noticed that your comments have nothing to actually do with my blog. You would have saved yourself some embarrassment.
In fact your comments serve to prove my point. African Americans and those concerned about Civil Rights can ill afford to allow anti-immigrant activists to craft laws.
October 26, 2009 7:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ooopsie, Eric, OGD was respinding to Kuyleh and his/her inability or unwillingness to read the post to discover WHY such a percentage of actual citizens can't verify their births. The title of your post apparently cause some lightning storm in his/her brain, and NOT reading became the default position. LOL.
October 26, 2009 8:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
Uhhhh ... Eric . . .
As Wendy has pointed out above, I was responding to Kuyleh's myopic swill. That particular member invariably responds with some knee jerk reaction at anything having to do with issues dealing with the plight of minorities or those of poverty being discussed around these threads without fully reading what has been posted.
As an example of what were dealing with, don't overlook Kuyleh's bravado of "...a bullet in the head as they're trying to sneak into the country" comment about illegal aliens.
And relating to my comment to Kuyleh about playing World of WarCraft games and some brass that needs polishing and a pair of boots needing some spit shining, you may wish to avail yourself to Kuyleh's bio here (scroll down on the right) to put my comment in perspective.
~OGD~
October 27, 2009 1:11 AM | Reply | Permalink
OGD,
I should have read how comments run on here. I read and clicked to fast after Kuyleh and apologize for jumping when I should have been reading.
October 27, 2009 2:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
No biggie Eric . . .
I knew what happened so no need for the apology although I sincerely appreciate it. Thank you. It's easy to overlook who's responding what with the way the comments are formatted and offset.
On another note ... I notice that you have published works about Dan Stein and his outfit. What a tangled web that outfit weaves. Just another chip off Wycliffe Draper. My combined knowledge of these individuals over the past four decades stem from travels while in the Navy back in the mid-60s and the "Christ of the Ozarks" tourist attraction and front for racists in Eureka Springs, Arkansas that the ol' radio racist Reverend Gerald L. K. Smith had built with a reported $1 million donated by Draper.
Always remain vigilant!
~OGD~
October 28, 2009 12:17 AM | Reply | Permalink
I expect there will be a whole lot more people of color coming in from the cold so to speak for these benefits. The fact that this bill will be signed into law by a black president ought to be signal enough. You have to have a social security number to legally work in this country. Even Canadians have to show some proof of citizenship when they get health care otherwise their system would be swamped with US citizens.
This is a step up the ladder not a barrier to advancement as so many of the requirements you cite were before. Of course Republicans will try to make the registration process as complicated and onerous as possible, as they always do. They'd rather pay for expensive bureaucratic barriers than actual benefits. Let them try, they won't succeed.
October 26, 2009 9:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
Markg8. There are no provisions that would allow people of color to come "in fromm the cold so to speak for these benefits."
You should read one of my earlier post about what it took for me to replace my identification and I happen to be someone with alot of access. Something most folks don't have--nearly 9% of black folks don't have the documentation needed to get their identification and have no way of aquiring it.
I agree that the Repbulicans love expensive barriers but even the Canadians understand that it cost less for preventative care than when people show up at the emergency room. Let's hope Dems get it as well.
Thanks for your comments!
October 27, 2009 2:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hey Eric . . .
Don't miss my reply above ... here.
~OGD~
October 28, 2009 12:26 AM | Reply | Permalink