Status Update: DACA and the ACA
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued new regulations ending the exclusion of DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) recipients from accessing affordable health care through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplaces. Ten years after the marketplaces were created, this change will allow DACA recipients to obtain health coverage and income-based financial assistance through HealthCare.gov and state-based marketplaces.
While this policy shift is a significant victory for equitable access to health care, it's important to note that challenges persist. For example, DACA recipients are still ineligible for Medicaid and CHIP in states that offer these programs to lawfully residing immigrant children and pregnant people. The expansion of ACA coverage to DACA recipients is a crucial step forward, but it's clear that further efforts are urgently needed to ensure comprehensive healthcare access for all residents in the United States.
Learn more about these changes and challenges in DACA and the ACA, and bring your questions for our September update!
Raymond Rico
Raymond is an immigration lawyer and owner of the Law Office of Raymond Rico, LLC. Raymond previously worked in Washington, DC for the National Immigration Law Center as a fellow of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute. Raymond facilitated the "United We Dream Coalition," to fight for immigrant student rights. Raymond has been a lawyer since 2011 and continues to be active in the immigration fight locally. He serves on the Vibrant Health board, the Hispanic Development Fund of Greater Kansas City board, Concerned Citizens for Immigrants and Refugees, and just termed off the ACLU of Kansas board of directors.
Justin Gust
Justin Gust started with El Centro in 2014 as a Health Navigator in their Olathe office. He now serves as Vice President of Community Engagement and was previously the Director of Community Health, overseeing El Centro’s Health Navigation Program, ¡Inscríbase! (Get Enrolled!) project, and ¡Vacúnate! (Get Vaccinated!) projects. A native of Olathe, KS, Mr. Gust graduated from Kansas State University in 2012 with a BA in Social Work and recently completed his Masters of Social Work at the University of Missouri in Kansas City in May this year. He is certified in Patient Navigation through the Harold P. Freeman Patient Navigation Institute and has been a Navigator and Certified Application Counselor for the Health Insurance Marketplace many years since its implementation. Justin recently joined the national Advisory Panel on Outreach and Education (APOE) for CMS, uplifting and prioritizing the unique needs of our Spanish speaking, immigrant communities in the Kansas City area while reviewing new materials and health education efforts being developed nationally within the Department of Health and Human Services.