Jorge Reyes Salinas, photo by Scott Duncan PhotographyJorge Reyes Salinas is communications director for Equality California, an LGBTQ advocacy group, and a fearless advocate for undocumented residents and the LGBTQ+ community.
Immigrant workers harvest strawberries in a Salinas field. (Photo: David A. Litman, via Shutterstock)While we remain in the throes of an increasingly savage pandemic, policy makers at all levels of government are trying to soften the impact of the outbreak on our physical and financial health. But they are not the only ones: A group of little-known organizations are trying to ease the impact on an especially vulnerable community — undocumented immigrants.
People walking along an Orange County sidewalk, following the creation of a census panel set up by former Gov. Jerry Brown. (Photo: Associated Press) As the country prepares for the important 2020 census, California is throwing more resources than ever into making sure its population is properly counted. The state already has set aside $100 million for the event, far more than either the $2.3 million in today’s dollars it committed in 2010 or the $28.8 million in today’s dollars it did in 2000.
Hundreds of people advocating for improved health care rally outside San Francisco City Hall, 2017. (Photo: Kim Wilson, via Shutterstock)As a physician in California, I am so grateful to see preserving people’s access to health care at the top of our state’s New Year’s resolution list. Although a federal judge in Texas has ruled the Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional (in a state where five million people could be directly affected, no
A physician prepares a syringe for use. (Photo: Shutterstock)The results of a presidential election won by Republican Donald Trump has some in a panic. And with GOP majorities in both houses of Congress, Trump presumably can do just about anything. But California health advocates are not talking about abandoning the state’s healthcare system. They’re preparing for a fight.
A physician flanked by the California flag. (Illustration: Niyazz, via Shutterstock).Hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants in California would be able to buy insurance through the state healthcare coverage marketplace if the federal government accepts a newly signed state law to exempt them from the federal rule. On June 10, Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation requiring Covered California to ask the federal government for a waiver to let an estimated 390,000 undocumented immigrants buy health insurance – as long as they do it with their own money.
Elementary school students in a California classroom. ((Photo: Monkey Business Images)Right now California has the opportunity to lead the nation in one of the most pressing issues of our time: immigration reform and health for all. Governor Jerry Brown recently signed a budget that will offer Medi-Cal access to all children, regardless of immigration status, sometime next year. While this is a significant investment in
Demonstrators seeking more funding for health care coverage gathered recently at the state Capitol. Inside, the Senate voted to expand coverage to undocumented choldren. (Photo: Alvin Chen, Capitol Weekly)The state Senate today approved legislation that would make California the first state in the nation to extend health coverage to children who are in the country illegally and seek federal authorization to sell private insurance to those in the country illegally. The bill, now headed to the Assembly, would allow children under 19 from low-income families to qualify for state-funded Medi-Cal, regardless of their legal status.
Also known as the Health for All Act, the legislation aims to provide access to health care coverage to undocumented individuals who are not covered under the Affordable Care Act. SB 4 would expand Medi-Cal to low-income undocumented individuals and create a private insurance exchange option for those with higher incomes.
Photo of Dominga Sarabia by Lily Dayton, design by Cathy Krizik (HealthyCal.org)California Health Report: An estimated 2.6 million undocumented California residents are explicitly barred by law from the benefits of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The legislation has been a huge boon for many Californians: More than 3 million previously uninsured Californians gained health insurance since the start of the ACA’s first enrollment period. Almost 30 percent of the remaining uninsured, however, are undocumented immigrants who are ineligible for both Medi-Cal and assistance through Covered California.