Immigration in the United States Essay Sample

Immigrants come to the United States escaping from their homes for various reasons; There is a valid argument for the assertion that Immigrants come to the United States to free themselves from the violence, lack of opportunities to prosper or because in the United States we have a more advanced health system. Immigrants come to the United states seeking freedom and refugee, but instead the U.S government makes it harder for undoctumented immigrants especially when it comes to healthcare. Immigrants avoid healthcare because they are afraid of deportation, they do not have access to many funded programs, some do not have the sufficient funds to afford healthcare, and lastly they are segregated from US residents and citizens. 

To begin, Immigrants flee their country for a reason; when they came to the united states they are aware that they are undocumented as a result they avoide anything that gets them deported such as risiking themselves using healthcare. For example,Barriers to health care for undocumented immigrants: A literature review by Hacker, K., Anies, M., Folb, B. L., & Zallman, L. (2015, October 30). states, “Concerns about being reported to authorities if they utilized services or provided their documentation”  This conveys that immigrants avoid healthcare because they are afraid of using the service which will result in being reported to ICE and sent back to their country.  Another Example would be the case of an immigrant man who had a severe diabetic issue but refused to seek help. For instance, Fear, anxiety, apprehension: Immigrants fear doctor visits could leave them vulnerable to deportation – Chicago Tribune  by Elejalde-Ruiz ( 2018, February 22) states, “The man’s toe had turned from deep purple to black by the time his family went to the emergency room. Soon they would discover it was gangrene, a complication of undiagnosed diabetes, and a portion of the toe would be amputated. But before that, as the days passed and the toe blackened, the family’s urge to go to the hospital was outweighed by fear that immigration agents could be lurking there.” This illustrates that immigrants avoid healthcare when the sickness becomes unbearable; They are afraid of going into hospitals and the consequence of being deported back to their country. 

Second of all ,Many US citizens and residents have access to funded medical programs like medicaid and medicare;this is a rare possibility for immigrants. As an example,Healthcare For Unauthorized Immigrants by ACOG committee , “Unauthorized immigrants are less likely than other residents of the United States to have health insurance. Their access to publicly funded health programs has become increasingly limited since the passage of welfare reform in 1996 and varies from state to state. Unauthorized immigrants are excluded from benefits provided under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA).” This establishes that undocumented immigrants are not able to become part of Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) ever since the welfare reform emerged. Another example would be Serious Challenges And Potential Solutions For Immigrant Health During COVID-19 authored by Whitney L. Duncan and Sarah B. Horton (2020, April 18)  this article states, “Even aside from these concerns, millions of undocumented immigrants lack health insurance, in large part of course because they are barred from coverage through the Affordable Care Act, Medicare, and many Medicaid programs. Among the nonelderly population, fewer than one in ten U.S. citizens are uninsured, while more than four in ten undocumented immigrants lack insurance. Many of these uninsured immigrants will not have the option of complying with guidance to call primary care physicians in case of COVID-19 symptoms. The Families First Coronavirus Response Act provides free coronavirus testing for the uninsured. However, it does not cover coronavirus treatment. Although the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act provides $100 billion to hospitals to treat the uninsured, it does not exempt patients from cost-sharing or physician bills. Alarmed about out-of-pocket medical costs, many undocumented immigrants will wait to seek care until their symptoms are life-threatening.” This conveys that in such a tragic time like this pandemic immigrants were part of the most affected population in the U.S; There were a few funded programs that provided $100 billion for the uninsured but, to avoid paying fees that were not covered they waited until the symptoms were extremely severe.

Additionally,Immigrants do not have the sufficient funds to afford healthcare, As an example Healthcare Options for Undocumented Immigrants by Brooke. A. Lewis States, “More than 10 million undocumented immigrants live in the U.S., and nearly half who are not yet seniors are uninsured. For many, the lack of financial resources can make access to healthcare complex and confusing. Some undocumented immigrants face barriers to receiving quality medical treatment. Some fear deportation, have language barriers with providers, or do not have the ability to pay for treatment” This alludes to show that More than 10 million immigrants are uninsured and  do not have the financial resources  to pay for medical treatment. Another example would be A Threat to Immigrant Health Care with Potential Consequences for All | RAND by Kathryn Pitkin Derose which states, “ Yet, access to Medicaid and other publicly funded health services is critical for immigrant populations. This is because although immigrants are more likely to be working than non-immigrants, they are also more likely to work in jobs that do not provide health insurance and that pay low wages.” This exemplifies that funding healthcare for immigrants and undocumented immigrants is critical because not only can they not afford it because of the very low wages, but also because jobs are most likely to not provide health insurance.

Last but not least, undocumented immigrants are segragated from the rest of U.S population. For instance, MANY IMMIGRANTS ARE DENIED ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE, LEAVING MOMS AND BABIES AT RISK By Asees Bhasin states, “immigrant people are less likely to have access to health insurance compared to native-born people. While slightly more than half of U.S. families obtain health insurance via their employer,1 many immigrants are segregated into jobs and industries that are less likely to offer employer-sponsored coverage.2 Moreover, immigrant workers are also more likely to have lower incomes and are often priced out of insurance.” This conveys that immigrants are more likely than the rest of the U.S to be isolated into jobs that do not provide healthcare coverage and also the pricing on insurance is out of their budget because of low wages. Another example would be Undocumented Immigrants in the United States: Use of Health Care by the Hastings Center it states, “There is also considerable evidence that many undocumented immigrants live with unmet health care needs. Undocumented immigrants are much less likely than U.S. citizens or legal immigrants to have private health insurance. They are ineligible for Medicare and their access to Medicaid is usually restricted to emergency provisions, which means that they lack access to the two major public insurance programs in the U.S.” This elaborates that the two most important public insurances (medicaid and medicare) are not provided to immigrants because they are deemed ineligible unlike the rest of the “legal” U.S population which leaves them little to no options on obtaining healthcare. 

To sum up everything that has been stated, This topic is truly important because immigrants come to the United States for a chance at a better life. A better life includes not having trouble obtaining healthcare.  From personal experience living in the Dominican Republic healthcare is extremely expensive for the low income population and the treatment was and is not worth the amount of money they charge among other reasons; this results in moving to other countries that do have everything their home country is missing like the United States. Instead, the United States mistreats immigrants and treats them like invaders. An in-depth study should be made because everyone should be entitled to the use of healthcare because sickness, diseases and painful situations can not be cured any other way.