October 10, 2018. This article discusses the federal administration’s proposed “public charge” rule that would limit access to green cards and other visas for immigrants who don’t meet certain income requirements or who use specific public benefits such as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), or Medicaid. The author refers to FPI’s new report that estimates that 24 million people, 9 million which are children, would be affected by this rule. The author goes on to link the proposed rule to the history of the Chinese Exclusion Act.
A new report by the Fiscal Policy Institute reveals that an estimated 24 million people and 9 million children under the age of 18 would be affected by the proposal. The number includes both the otherwise eligible applicants who would be denied a green card or visa as a result of taking public benefits and the immigrants who would be too frightened to even apply in the first place.
The Fiscal Policy Institute has concluded that the proposed rule change by the Trump administration has gone too far, unilaterally shifting immigration policy without congressional oversight and redefining what it means to be an “acceptable” immigrant.
As the Fiscal Policy Institute notes in its report: “The stakes are unbearably high. As a parent, if you apply for SNAP or Medicaid, you may fear losing the chance to stay in this country with your kids. Yet, not applying may mean seeing your family go hungry or not being able to see a doctor when you are sick.”
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