11 Apr Contra Costa Expands Healthcare for Undocumented Residents

Roxanne Carrillo Garza, senior director of Healthy Contra Costa, and Anna Roth, director of Contra Costa Health Services, present the healthcare expansion option at the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors meeting Tuesday. (Screenshot captured by Ana Tellez-Witrago / The CC Pulse)

By Ana Tellez-Witrago

The Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved removing immigration requirements and raised income eligibility limitations for the county’s basic healthcare program.

The amended policy aims to assist 10,500 uninsured people by providing access to general care, mental health, specialist medical care, and emergency and inpatient treatments within the county’s healthcare network and community clinics.

Supervisor John Gioia described the healthcare expansion as a corrective measure for a “mistake.” During the 2009 recession, the county added legal status as a requirement to qualify for its public healthcare. This measure would rescind that requirement.

“We are creating equity by removing the barrier we placed in 2009 on undocumented [people] when they were kicked off the program,” said Gioia during the board meeting.

He clarified that the recommendations do not create a separate healthcare plan but allow all income-eligible county residents to access the county’s healthcare plan regardless of their immigration status.

“This is equal. You’re treated the same whether you’re a resident, a citizen or undocumented,” Gioia said. “You are eligible for basic healthcare.”

>>>Read: ‘Am I Really That Sick?’ Healthcare Costs Weigh on Undocumented People

The recommendations were developed by a working committee composed of representatives from the supervisor’s offices, Contra Costa Health, Aliados Health, Contra Costa Employment and Human Services Department, and Healthy Contra Costa’s One Contra Costa Coalition.

The working group went through a six-month process of reviewing and learning from health coverage programs in other counties and analyzing Contra Costa County-specific data. Their goal was to increase access to health coverage for the uninsured, guided by equity.

California this year made all undocumented income-eligible individuals able to qualify for Medi-Cal regardless of age, yet the working group found that many county residents still do not qualify for it or Covered California.

>>>Read: Medi-Cal Expanded to All Undocumented Californians, but Income Limits Leave Many Out

The high cost of living in the Bay Area is one of the primary reasons for their exclusion. A living wage for an individual in Contra Costa County is considered to be $46,488 per year, much higher than the $20,121 per person limit for Medi-Cal. Often, those who make too much money to qualify for Medi-Cal can get subsidized insurance through Covered California. However, the immigration requirements for that program have not been lifted, leaving many low-income undocumented people without a healthcare option.

The expansion will cover people making 138%-300% of the federal poverty level, which is $15,060 for an individual in the contiguous United States (i.e., excluding Alaska and Hawaii) in 2024. That comes out to a range of $20,782.80 to $45,180.

>>>Read: Increasing Access to Healthcare Reduces Poverty, Policy Group Finds

Expanding health coverage is projected to result in lower costs for the county. According to the health department consultant, not all of the expenses for this program will be new, and people will have better access to preventative care and comprehensive services, which will reduce expensive emergency room visits. While the internal health care network is not expected to incur new costs, partnering with community clinics is estimated to cost $750,000.

“After 15 years of exclusion, our immigrant friends, families, and communities will no longer have to worry about whether they can access healthcare,” said Roxanne Carrillo Garza, senior director for Healthy Contra Costa, in a press release from the One Contra Costa Coalition.

Deborah Ballinger, interim executive director of United Latino Voices, shared her support for the county’s healthcare expansion and highlighted the contributions of immigrants.

“Immigrants are an important part of this county’s economic base. They pay sales and other taxes but can’t access the resources they need to achieve equivalent health outcomes,” said Ballinger. “We need to rise above this extractive relationship with our undocumented residents where we take from the labor but don’t provide them with access to basic services.”

There are an estimated 8,000 DACA recipients in Contra Costa, and according to the Center for American Progress, DACA recipients in California contribute $2.1 billion in federal taxes and $1 billion in state and local taxes.

Contra Costa County residents will be able to apply for the county’s health care coverage on the health department’s website: https://www.cchealth.org/get-care/for-people-without-health-coverage. Applications are expected to open in early May.