The Idaho House Health and Welfare Committee advanced a bill on Tuesday that would eliminate services for unauthorized immigrants in Idaho, including prenatal care and food support.
Rep. Jordan Redman, R-Coeur d’Alene, sponsored House Bill 135, which was approved 10-5 by the committee.
Undocumented individuals are ineligible for Medicaid or Medicare in Idaho. All low-income people, however, are eligible for medical care, including crisis counseling, prenatal care, postnatal care, immunizations, and communicable disease treatment through public health.
The bill would prevent people from receiving those services unless their legal residence could be verified. It does include a provision for treatment “of an emergency medical condition.”
The bill also eliminates access to some short-term shelter and food assistance programs, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, as well as soup kitchens and food pantry programs funded by the state. Food assistance is now available to qualified families with children.
Redman believes the bill serves as a deterrent, incentivizing people without legal status to leave Idaho because neighboring states provide these programs to undocumented individuals.
Rep. Megan Egbert, D-Boise, asked Redman what would happen if an undocumented immigrant went to the ER for a non-emergency illness.
In that case, Redman said, the hospital would probably treat the person, but the state would not pay for it.
Several legislators argued that undocumented immigrants pay income taxes.
“I don’t know that we should be sending taxpayer funds to pay for welfare benefits to pay for people who have already broken the law to be here,” Mr. Redman said.
Randy Ford, President and CEO of the Idaho Foodbank, testified against the bill. He believes charitable food banks cannot replace government-funded food programs because the Idaho Foodbank receives only 5% of its food from government programs and the majority from charitable donations.
“What we do see is an increase in food insecurity has detrimental effects, especially with children,” according to Ford. “So, as you cut away at some benefits children would have, it puts more strain on what we do, churches do and other partners across the state.”
House Minority Leader Ilana Rubel, D-Boise, proposed a substitute motion to hold the bill in committee.
She objected to the bill’s lack of exemptions for children of undocumented parents born in the United States, who would become American citizens.
She also argued that eliminating prenatal care deprives a potential future US citizen of in-utero care.
“If we take that care we are potentially dooming a future U.S. citizen,” Rubel reported. “… Frankly, neither the fetus nor the baby chose to be here.
She also objected to removing care for people with contagious diseases.
“A person with a contagious disease is going to give to other people in the community, likely American citizens in the community,” Rubel told me.
Reps. Lori McCann, R-Lewiston; Josh Wheeler, R-Ammon; and Ben Fuhriman, R-Shelley, joined the two Democrats on the committee in opposing the bill.
The bill is now headed to the full House of Representatives for a vote.
