Mandatory Health Insurance Requirement Temporarily Suspended

Immigrants who want to come to live in the United States have to cross many hurdles before they can realize their American dream. Under the Trump administration, the obstacles just keep on growing. One of the recent new hurdles you as a potential immigrant have to cross before you are granted a visa or green card is proving you have health insurance coverage in the United States. This poses a serious challenge to many immigrants, especially since the rules and guidelines for mandatory health insurance haven’t been defined yet. 

Recently, however, this rule requiring mandatory health insurance for immigrants has been suspended. This could be a glimmer of hope for immigrants whose immigration attempts have been made near impossible amid the Coronavirus pandemic and its added travel bans. 

Why Was Health Insurance Mandatory for Visa Holders?

In October 2019, President Trump made a proclamation requiring consular officers to deny any green card or immigrant visa applications if the applicant couldn’t show that:

1. They will have unsubsidized health insurance, or
2. They will have enough money to pay for medical costs once they are in the United States. 

This proclamation came into effect on November 3, 2019, and made health insurance mandatory for immigrant visa holders. 

The reasoning behind the proclamation was to prevent immigrants from financially burdening the U.S. healthcare system. According to President Trump, uninsured immigrants fall back on government-funded health care. As a result, it drives up health care costs for Americans. So President Trump requires applicants to prove they have sufficient resources to pay for reasonably anticipated medical expenses or to prove they will purchase health insurance within 30 days of entering the United States. 

This requirement is an additional hurdle immigrants to the U.S. would have had to cross before being granted the immigration benefit they applied for. Fortunately, this rule has now been suspended. But only temporarily. 

Why Was the Rule Temporarily Suspended?

On July 29, 2020, a federal judge from the District courts in New York suspended this new rule under Trump’s proclamation. The Trump administration is now temporarily blocked from enforcing its health insurance mandate on applicants. 

This temporary block will be in place until the national state of emergency, declared as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, is called off. At this stage, no one is certain when this will be.

The judge cited the same reasons used to block the public charge rule as its reasons for suspending mandatory health insurance for immigrants. Basically, it comes down to the fact that no one should be prevented from seeking medical care or should be punished for seeking financial aid as a result of the pandemic. 

This temporary suspension is a welcome relief to many immigrants and green card applicants. However, the suspension is only temporary and will come into force again. Even though it might grant relief in the short term, it is best to be prepared for when it comes back in force again.

Let’s take a look at exactly what President Trump’s mandatory health insurance rule entails. 

Who Needs Health Insurance?

The mandatory health insurance rule applies to all immigrants applying for a green card or immigrant visa from outside of the United States. Even though it is mainly aimed at immigrants applying for family-based green cards, there is a wide range of other applicants that will be affected by this rule. 

The rule is aimed at preventing people without health insurance from entering the United States. So, it only applies to people applying from outside of the U.S. If you are applying for an adjustment of status, you won’t be required to get health insurance under this new rule. The public charge rule will, however, still apply. 

There are a few exceptions to the mandatory health insurance rule, though. You will not be required to get health insurance if you: 

•  Were already issued with an immigrant visa before November 3, 2019
• Are a green card holder seeking re-entry an SB-1 visa (which is a returning resident visa)
• Are a refugee or seeking asylum
• Are an unmarried child of a U.S. citizen and you are under the age of 21
• Are an orphan or child being adopted by a U.S. citizen
• Are an Iraqi or Afghan national entering the United States using a Special Immigrant Visa
• Are an immigrant admitted in the national interest or to further law enforcement goals, or
• Are under the age of 18 years.

If you are a parent of a U.S. citizen, you will also be excluded from the rule if you can show you won’t become a burden to the U.S. healthcare system. Basically, if you aren’t getting health insurance, you will need to show your U.S. citizen child will be able to cover the cost of any of your medical expenses. 

If you plan to immigrate to the United States with your family, you will need to get health insurance for your entire family. 

What Kind of Insurance is Needed?

There are a few different kinds of health insurance for immigrants that would be acceptable under the rule. These include:

• Short-term insurance which covers at least 364 days, or covers you until you leave the United States on planned travel
• Any unsubsidized health plan bought through an Obamacare marketplace
• Employer-sponsored plans which include coverage under COBRA, retiree plans, or association health plans 
• Catastrophic plans
• Certain military health insurance programs, such as TRICARE
• Coverage under a family member’s health insurance
• Any other plans approved by the Department of Health and Human Services.

You also have to keep the following in mind when choosing a health insurance plan:

• If you are 18 years or older, Medicare coverage is not an acceptable health insurance option for purposes of this rule.
• Some health plans have a 90-day waiting period before coverage officially begins. If this is the case with your health plan, it won’t provide the required coverage in the 30-day window required under Trump’s rule. 

How Can Visa Holders Prove They Have Insurance?

The proclamation doesn’t say how you must specifically prove you will get the required insurance within 30 days or your arrival. It just says you must show this to the satisfaction of the consular officer. The Department of State is mandated to establish more specific rules or procedures on how consular officers can determine this. Or what proof you need to give to them.

The safest option would be to get health insurance coverage before you go for your visa interview. Then you can show you already have this in place, and there are no gaps for them to deny your application purely based on this. 

However, some experts say you only have to identify an acceptable policy and show you have money set aside to purchase it to satisfy this requirement. 

Conclusion

Even though the temporary suspension of the mandatory health insurance rule brings welcome relief to many immigration applicants, the suspension is only temporary. If you can, complete your application before the suspension lifts. But if you aren’t able to keep the tips, we’ve provided in mind to make sure you’re well prepared.

Frank Gogol

I’m a firm believer that information is the key to financial freedom. On the Stilt Blog, I write about the complex topics — like finance, immigration, and technology — to help immigrants make the most of their lives in the U.S. Our content and brand have been featured in Forbes, TechCrunch, VentureBeat, and more.

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