If you’re an immigrant arriving in the U.S., one of the first things on your to-do list is obtaining health insurance. Unlike many other countries, the U.S. does not have universal health coverage, and although Medicare and Medicaid are government-sponsored health plans, they’re not available to new immigrants.

So let’s take a look at some frequently-asked questions about what’s available for immigrants, including new arrivals and those who have been in the U.S. for a long time.

Can an Immigrant Enroll in Coverage Outside of Open Enrollment?

Yes. Becoming a U.S. citizen or gaining lawfully-present status in the U.S. is a qualifying event, which gives the person 60 days to enroll in a plan through the health insurance exchange (note that this is one of just a few qualifying events that does not trigger a special enrollment period for plans purchased outside the exchange; the special enrollment period is only available in the exchange).

Some recent immigrants have access to employer-sponsored plans, and those plans also have special enrollment periods for people who are hired outside of open enrollment or experience a qualifying event. So although open enrollment—for both individual and employer-sponsored plans—only comes around once per year, new immigrants have an opportunity to enroll in coverage regardless of when they immigrate.

Can Undocumented Immigrants Obtain Coverage?

Under ACA rules, legally present immigrants can enroll in plans offered through the exchange, and can receive premium subsidies if their income makes them eligible. But the ACA does not have any provisions that allow undocumented immigrants to obtain coverage.

The law explicitly prevents undocumented immigrants from purchasing coverage in the exchange—even if they pay full price; see section 1312(f)(3) of the ACA. Undocumented immigrants are also ineligible for Medicaid.

California began using state funding to make Medicaid (Medi-Cal) available for undocumented immigrant children as of 2016, and 170,000 children gained coverage as a result (as of 2019, Governor Gavin Newsom has proposed expanding this to cover young adults up to age 26).

California officials wanted to take this a step further and allow undocumented immigrant adults to purchase coverage (without subsidies) in California’s exchange, Covered California. The state enacted legislation (SB10) in June 2016 to get the ball rolling on this, and submitted a 1332 waiver proposal to the federal government in September 2016, since federal approval is necessary in order to change the rules that currently bar undocumented immigrants from purchasing even full-price exchange plans.

But in January 2017, two days before Donald Trump was inaugurated, California withdrew their 1332 waiver proposal amid concerns that the Trump Administration could potentially use Covered California data to locate and deport undocumented immigrants.

Undocumented immigrants can obtain coverage under employer-sponsored plans or student health plans if they’re otherwise eligible, and they can also purchase individual market coverage as long as they buy it outside of the exchange. But for the time being, they are not able to enroll in coverage through the health insurance exchange in any state.

Are ACA Premium Subsidies Limited to U.S. Citizens?

No. Premium subsidies (premium tax credits) in the exchanges are available to lawfully-present residents, which includes a long list of immigration statuses (note that Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals—DACA—is not considered an eligible immigration status for purchasing coverage in the exchange).

In fact, premium subsidies are available to recent immigrants with income below the poverty level, which is not the case for non-immigrants or immigrants who have been lawfully present U.S. residents for more than five years.

The ACA calls for people with income below the poverty level to receive Medicaid instead of private plans in the exchange, which is why premium subsidies generally aren’t available to applicants with income below the poverty level. But recent immigrants aren’t eligible for federally-funded Medicaid until they have been in the U.S. for at least five years (states have the option to use their own funding to extend Medicaid coverage to recent immigrants, which some do, particularly in the case of pregnant women).

When the ACA was written, lawmakers realized that the ACA’s lower income threshold for premium subsidies (i.e., the poverty level) would leave recent immigrants with low incomes without any realistic coverage options. So, they specifically provided for premium subsidies that would cover new immigrants with income below the poverty level. In this situation, the applicant’s income is treated as if it’s at the poverty level (or 139 percent of the poverty level in states that have expanded Medicaid, where that’s the lowest income that makes a person eligible for subsidies in the exchange instead of Medicaid). In 2019, that means the enrollee would have to pay 2.08 percent of his or her income for the second-lowest-cost silver plan in the exchange (here’s an explanation of how the math works).

Ironically, the coverage gap that lawmakers were trying to prevent for recent immigrants applies instead for 2.2 million non-immigrants in 16 states that have opted not to accept federal funding to expand Medicaid (an option states had as a result of a 2012 Supreme Court ruling that eliminated the federal government’s right to condition overall Medicaid funding on a state’s willingness to expand coverage).

Because those states haven’t expanded Medicaid, adults without dependent children are generally ineligible for Medicaid regardless of how low their incomes are. And because premium subsidies aren’t available to people with income below the poverty level (since they were supposed to have Medicaid under the ACA), those individuals simply don’t have any realistic access to health insurance, as paying full price for coverage isn’t generally practical for people with income below the poverty level (some of those states are expected to expand Medicaid in 2019 or 2020, as a result of ballot initiatives that voters approved in 2018).

But in every state, recent immigrants with lawfully-present status are eligible for premium subsidies even if their income is below the poverty level.

How Does the Exchange Know That Applicants Are Lawfully Present?

During the enrollment process, the exchanges must verify that the enrollee is lawfully present in the U.S. There is a section on the application where non-citizens can enter their immigration status and include details such as an alien number or an I-94 number (here’s a complete list of the documents that can be used to prove immigration status, and how to enter them if you’re enrolling via HealthCare.gov; state-run exchanges have similar processes).

If you’re not able to enter the document number or you get an error, you’ll have an option to upload a copy of your immigration documents, or mail them to the exchange. If you aren’t able to provide immigration documents at all, your coverage may end up being retroactively canceled.

So, if you enroll and are having trouble with the system that verifies immigration status, don’t just let it slide, as your coverage could be terminated if you do. Reach out to the exchange for help, either on the phone or in-person at an enrollment center, and make sure that your documentation is accepted.

Cosmo Insurance Agency is an independent insurance agency serving surrounding communities in New Jersey. Cosmo keeps its promise to assure an efficient and creative approach to the services we offer. Each of our clients experience a personalized and long-term relationship with us. Our New Jersey based team of health brokers guides our clients in helping them choose the most cost-effective options. By incorporating the latest in technology-based tools and laws on healthcare, employee benefits, life insurance and finance, we keep our clients up-to-date with the plans that encompass all of their needs, whether it is individual or group insurance. 

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