Statement attributed to:
Jesse M. Ehrenfeld, M.D., MPH
President, American Medical Association
“Our country will become healthier and more equitable after the Biden Administration announced today it will expand health care access for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), or Dreamers.
“The AMA has supported (PDF) extending eligibility to purchase Affordable Care Act marketplace coverage to DACA recipients and advancing policies that address the unmet medical needs of unaccompanied undocumented minor children. The AMA knows that expanding access and advancing health equity improves population health and is likely to result in reduced costs for American taxpayers since individuals without insurance are less likely to receive preventative or routine health screenings and may delay necessary medical care, often resulting in higher health care costs down the road.
“The AMA also continues to support expanding access to Medicaid/CHIP coverage to these populations, which was proposed but ultimately not finalized. While we appreciate resource constraints on state Medicaid agencies, we urge the administration to finalize these important access expansions in future rulemaking and look forward to engaging on this and other policies that expand access to health care services, particularly for historically marginalized populations.”
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About the American Medical Association
The American Medical Association is the physicians’ powerful ally in patient care. As the only medical association that convenes 190+ state and specialty medical societies and other critical stakeholders, the AMA represents physicians with a unified voice to all key players in health care. The AMA leverages its strength by removing the obstacles that interfere with patient care, leading the charge to prevent chronic disease and confront public health crises and, driving the future of medicine to tackle the biggest challenges in health care.
