[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 65 (Wednesday, April 19, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H1876-H1879]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1730
  ONE STEP CLOSER TO UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE AND THE AMERICAN DREAM AND 
                                PROMISE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Miller of Ohio). Under the Speaker's 
announced policy of January 9, 2023, the gentlewoman from Illinois 
(Mrs. Ramirez) is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the 
minority leader.


                             General Leave

  Mrs. RAMIREZ. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on the subject of my Special Order.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Illinois?
  There was no objection.
  Mrs. RAMIREZ. Mr. Speaker, tonight, I am convening a Special Order 
hour for the Congressional Progressive Caucus, where we are focused on 
our shared commitment and shared urgency to make comprehensive 
immigration reform and universal healthcare our reality. We are one 
step closer to doing so for DACA recipients, or Dreamers, who have been 
waiting and are still waiting for us to make good on our long-overdue 
commitment to a pathway to citizenship for them.
  Healthcare is a human right, full stop. I know saying healthcare is a 
human right can feel more like a slogan or a hashtag than a call to 
action that anyone will actually do something about. I have certainly 
felt that myself and felt frustrated by the simplicity of that call to 
action contrasted with a deflating lack of change.
  Some people think it is too lofty and that we should start smaller. 
What does it mean, though, to start smaller? When it comes to 
healthcare, that means dividing people into who is worthy of healthcare 
and who is not.
  I will take a quick moment to thank everyone who doesn't give in and 
doesn't give up on envisioning a better world that has more than enough 
resources for all of us because I know that you get pushback, doubt, 
and detraction. It is those big, lofty goals that keep us rooted in our 
why and keep pushing us for better.
  That is why, last week when President Biden announced his proposal to 
expand eligibility for Medicaid and Affordable Care Act benefits to 
Dreamers, we all celebrated.
  DACA first started in 2012, over a decade ago. There are 
approximately 600,000 DACA recipients living across the United States. 
They are healthcare workers, they are teachers, they are parents, and 
they are neighbors.
  About 35,000 Dreamers call my home State of Illinois their home. One 
of them is my husband, Boris Hernandez, who has lived in the U.S. since 
he was 14 years old. He has now lived in the U.S. more than he ever 
lived in Guatemala.
  Collectively, Dreamers pay $9.4 billion in State and Federal taxes 
every single year.
  For all these years, access to healthcare through the ACA or through 
Medicaid hasn't been available to Dreamers. That is a policy failure 
with life and death consequences.
  Right now, DACA recipients can mainly only access healthcare if their 
employer provides it. Otherwise, they are largely reliant upon the 
State they happen to live in to have a State-funded healthcare program.
  According to the Department of Health and Human Services, more than a 
third of DACA recipients don't have any healthcare insurance 
whatsoever. We know what happens when you deny access to affordable 
healthcare. People avoid going to the doctor as much as possible 
because they can't afford to go. Health conditions that may only need 
preventive care or some kind of medication go undiagnosed, untreated, 
and get worse and worse until it is a life or death emergency.
  Before I came to Congress, I had the deep honor of serving in the 
Illinois House of Representatives, where I led legislation with the 
Latino Legislative Caucus, the Healthy Illinois coalition, and Governor 
J.B. Pritzker to create what is now State law that expands Medicaid 
coverage to all residents age 42 and up regardless of legal status. 
This made Illinois the first State in the entire country to provide 
healthcare coverage to immigrants, regardless of status.
  By the time this passed into law, it reflected multiple rounds of 
negotiations. If I could have, I would have had eligibility start at 
the age of 19 to ensure that there was no break in healthcare coverage 
for our children who are now adults.
  I now look forward to working with President Biden's proposed 
expansion of healthcare coverage to Dreamers and it going into effect 
so that we can continue to build on the work we have done in Illinois 
and across the country.
  Hearing even one story of what expanding healthcare coverage for just 
one person has meant to them and their loved ones underscores what is 
true for all of us. We must recognize the importance of providing 
access to quality healthcare and services for all people, regardless of 
their citizenship status.
  Olga, a resident in Illinois, who, because of this new State law, 
could access medical coverage for the first time, graciously shared her 
story with me. She said: ``I was born in Mexico, and I came to Chicago 
in 2004. I came to the United States for a better life for my family. I 
encountered many obstacles, such as language, work, housing, school for 
my children, and health. I had to get a dental treatment, but due to 
the cost, I put off going. Then, it got complicated and more expensive. 
I managed to save $8,000, but I had to choose between two options: pay 
for the dentist or pay for my son's university. Having access to 
medical coverage is a true relief because now I can go regularly to the 
doctor.''
  I share Olga's story because her story is the story of many others, 
hundreds of thousands of immigrants, whether DACA or otherwise, who 
live all across our country and still don't have the ability to go to 
the doctor when they need it.
  The immediate and tremendous impact she experienced once affordable 
healthcare was no longer denied is the same immediate and tremendous 
impact President Biden's proposal will have on all Dreamers.

  It feels obvious to say, but the benefits of access to affordable 
healthcare for someone who is a DACA recipient are the same for all 
immigrants. It is not just Dreamers.
  Yet, here is just one example of how we continue to divide and break 
up the immigrant community into politicized categories that we then use 
to weigh different members of the immigrant community against each 
other. Who is and isn't worthy of citizenship? Who is and isn't worthy 
of healthcare?
  I say all this as the only Member of Congress in a mixed-status 
marriage. What I want to make absolutely clear is that our families and 
our communities cannot be conveniently divided into documentation 
status and, therefore, neither can our deservedness of healthcare as a 
human right.
  That is why The New York Times' reporting this week that multiple 
staff at HHS warned the administration that migrant children were being 
hastily connected to sponsors who put them in grave danger cannot be 
seen as separate.
  More than 250,000 migrant children have come alone to the United 
States in the last 2 years alone, and thousands

[[Page H1877]]

have ended up in grueling, dangerous, exploitive jobs all across the 
country, in complete violation of child labor laws. They are away from 
their families and caregivers. They are not in school, and they are 
doing graveyard shifts in factories.
  You can't tell me that is healthy. You can't tell me these children 
and their families they have been separated from are not deserving of 
safe, caring sponsors who would prioritize their healthcare, education, 
wellness, and a pathway to citizenship.
  I commend President Biden for his proposal for Dreamers. It marks a 
significant step forward for immigration reform, demonstrating our 
commitment to protecting Dreamers by providing them with access to 
quality healthcare and services.
  But we must recognize this moment, which has been preceded by years 
of moments, that the brokenness of our immigration system is a failure 
we share on both sides of the aisle. Let us use this moment to 
rededicate ourselves to this shared responsibility to fix it humanely, 
comprehensively, and immediately.
  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield to my colleagues, who will 
highlight the tremendous impact that President Biden's proposed 
expansion of healthcare to Dreamers will have and our shared 
responsibility to make universal healthcare and comprehensive 
immigration reform a reality after all these years.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Frost).
  Mr. FROST. Mr. Speaker, I am here today because I am ecstatic that we 
have a President who has chosen to lead with love and compassion when 
it comes to other humans in this country.
  I thank President Biden for having the heart and courage to do what 
his predecessor never did: show respect and dignity to Dreamers and 
DACA recipients, who came to the United States through no choice of 
their own and are full-fledged Americans in every single way but one--
on paper.
  The Biden administration's move to expand healthcare coverage to DACA 
recipients is bold and historic and follows Democrats' commitment to 
helping immigrant communities that have spent their lives living in the 
shadows of this country.
  There are over half a million Dreamers in the United States who were 
extended a literal lifeline through the Deferred Action for Childhood 
Arrivals, or DACA, and over 20,000 DACA recipients who call my home 
State of Florida their home.
  Though DACA has been a wonderful beacon of hope for so many, through 
his action, President Biden has acknowledged that more can be done to 
help this vulnerable community.
  For years now, DACA recipients have been living with a weight on 
their shoulders. Constantly worried about losing their job means the 
end of being able to afford care, forcing them to stay in working 
environments that perhaps mistreat them, backed into a corner where 
they have to decide between getting to see a doctor or having to push 
through the pain and the illness.
  Let me be clear. No one should have to make that decision between 
access to medical care or putting food on the table or having a roof 
over their head. Healthcare in this country is and should be a human 
right for all people by virtue of being alive.
  That is a scenario that is all too familiar for DACA recipients. I 
have read stories of young people from my hometown in central Florida 
who have gotten healthcare for the first time in their lives only then 
to lose that care because of a layoff or job cuts.
  I am hard-pressed to find a working person or working family that can 
afford to pay $500 or more a month for health insurance. I have always 
said that if you love somebody, you want them to have healthcare and a 
good-paying job that treats them fairly. If you love somebody, you want 
them to succeed and thrive. If you love somebody, you want them to be 
healthy and to be able to see a doctor or medical professional if, God 
forbid, they become sick.
  Dreamers are people. DACA recipients are people. Immigrants are 
people. They deserve to be able to get their care through Medicaid and 
the ACA just like anybody else in this country.
  We still have so much work left to do to ensure that we actually 
create a humane, compassionate immigration system that offers a real 
pathway to citizenship for the hundreds of thousands of Dreamers and 
DACA recipients who call Florida and this country home, but this action 
is a beacon of hope.
  To the Dreamers across the country who are listening right now: Hear 
me when we say we won't stop fighting, not just for you but with you. 
Home is here. Healthcare is a human right.
  I thank all the organizers, young people, advocacy groups, and allies 
across the country who have spent years fighting for this very moment. 
Let's get to work and continue to provide for all people.

  Mrs. RAMIREZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Michigan 
(Ms. Tlaib).
  Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, I rise today and applaud the President. The 
President's recent announcement of a plan that would allow more than 
800,000 Dreamers across our county to have access to healthcare is to 
be applauded.
  I also thank Congresswoman Ramirez for her dedication and leadership 
and for hosting this important Special Order on this critical issue.
  I stand here before you as a child of immigrants but also the 
daughter of southwest Detroit, where I lived with 20 different 
ethnicities and backgrounds. Yes, many of my friends, many of my 
classmates, were Dreamers.
  We know that many of the issues we work on in this Chamber are 
connected. Immigration is connected to healthcare. Right now, in our 
country, we have a great need for comprehensive immigration reform and 
to ensure that every person has access to adequate healthcare in terms 
of coverage and care delivery.
  As somebody who worked on immigration issues and immigration justice, 
I know that our system is broken. Too many of our families are living 
in fear. Too many Dreamers, our neighbors who only know the United 
States as their home, continue to live a life where their rights could 
be stripped at any moment.
  I know how important it is to fix our broken immigration system 
instead of tearing families apart. Dreamers right here in our country 
deserve permanent protections and a dignified pathway for citizenship.
  No human being, Mr. Speaker, is illegal. We must protect our 
neighbors. We must protect those who are here simply because they want 
to have a better quality of life.
  We have immigrant communities, again, across our country who simply 
want a pathway to citizenship, a pathway that many of our parents, 
grandparents, and ancestors were afforded, a pathway that we enjoy and 
are proud of.

                              {time}  1745

  Why do many of my colleagues want to block this pathway in the land 
of opportunity?
  I am not sure. However, I know I applaud the administration's action 
to ensure that many Dreamers have access to healthcare. I implore 
President Biden and many of my colleagues in this Chamber and in the 
Senate to reject divisive and xenophobic immigration policies that, 
again, do not move our country forward in a way that we can be proud 
of.
  We cannot and should not embrace rhetoric and policies that only seek 
to pit communities against each other, tear families apart, and put 
immigrants in harm's way here in the United States and in their country 
of origin.
  We must choose to be a welcoming country. We must work to create a 
robust pathway to citizenship. We must enact comprehensive immigration 
reform. We must ensure that every person in our country has 
comprehensive adequate healthcare. We must also pass Medicare for All.
  Mr. Speaker, I am ready to get to work, and I cannot thank my amazing 
Progressive Caucus members enough, especially Congresswoman Ramirez, 
for this important Special Order.
  Mrs. RAMIREZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Louisiana 
(Mr. Carter).
  Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Ramirez 
for her incredible leadership and energy to provide a needed voice on 
an issue that is so critically important.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise to applaud President Biden and the Biden/Harris 
administration for the incredible steps that

[[Page H1878]]

they have taken. Thank you for believing and demonstrating action and 
not just words.
  I firmly believe in delivering permanent protections for Dreamers 
because immigrant rights are, in fact, human rights. President Biden's 
announcement to expand healthcare coverage for DACA recipients will 
protect some of our most vulnerable neighbors, family, and friends.
  Dreamers strengthen our economy and enrich our workplaces, our 
schools, and our communities. Over the last decade, DACA has brought 
stability, possibility, and progress to more than 800,000 people--these 
are our family, friends, neighbors, and colleagues. Even though this is 
their home, they are being denied the basic rights of healthcare, 
something that everyone, regardless of their station, should enjoy.
  Secretary Becerra's new proposed rule will allow DACA recipients to 
purchase qualified health insurance coverage. This is a step toward 
justice for folks who have been forced to pay sky-high, out-of-pocket 
costs for healthcare, or worse still, to go without lifesaving 
treatments because they are just too expensive.
  Fixing our broken immigration system will save lives and we must keep 
fighting to give Dreamers a permanent pathway to citizenship. A 
permanent pathway to citizenship. These actions from the Biden/Harris 
administration are vitally important for so many Louisianians in my 
home State and people across the United States who need these vital 
protections.
  Any policy is penny-wise and pound-foolish if we don't take into 
consideration all people. When people can't get affordable health 
insurance, they don't get it. It is that simple. When they can't afford 
it, they don't get it. It puts the burden on our emergency rooms. It 
ends up costing more money on the back end. Emergency room visits are 
far more expensive, and it is much more difficult to provide the needed 
care that individuals should have.
  Preventative care is a heck of a lot cheaper than after the fact. 
Providing resources is a heck of a lot cheaper on the front side than 
after the fact. Having a process that is clear for people who are here 
to abide by is a heck of a lot cheaper than after the fact.
  Mr. Speaker, I look forward to this proposed rule being finalized, 
and I stand firmly with my friends in the Progressive Caucus. I stand 
firmly with the White House in providing resources that will deliver 
permanent protection for Dreamers because, again, immigration rights 
are, in fact, human rights. They are rights that we all should stand 
firm for, that we all should stand together on, that we all should 
recognize as a human issue and an American issue.
  Mrs. RAMIREZ. Mr. Speaker, I too dream of that day. You see, half of 
my family is still undocumented. Half of my family has lived here for 
almost 40 years.
  My uncle, Max Guerra, will be turning 70 in 2 years. He works at a 
diner. He works 65 to 70 hours a week, standing there preparing meals 
for others to be able to enjoy.
  I asked him: Tio, you are almost 70, why are you still working so 
much?
  He says to me: Delia, I have to make sure that all my four boys get 
through college. I have to help them pay for college because I have no 
way of guaranteeing that I will be here tomorrow or the day after 
because of my immigration status. I have to work like today is the last 
day that I will be able to provide for my family. My uncle, Max Miliano 
Guerra, is not alone.
  As we think about this broken immigration system and as we think 
about healthcare, I have to go back to that moment where I proudly 
stood on the statehouse floor and passed legislation to expand 
healthcare coverage to people who are undocumented and over the age of 
42.
  I remember receiving a letter from a young woman who had just become 
a citizen. Her letter to me said, Representative Ramirez, I wish you 
would have been in the statehouse just a few years before. I wish you 
would have been able to pass the legislation you passed a few years ago 
because if you had done that my father would still be alive today.
  Her father was in this country for almost 40 whole years working at 
factories and small businesses, giving to the community, contributing 
every single day, paying taxes. He got very sick. He got cancer but had 
no healthcare. Her father worked until he could no longer work, which 
was days before he died because he had no access to healthcare in a 
country he contributed to for almost 40 years.
  This is why when we talk about healthcare coverage and when we talk 
about this moment and immigration, we can't separate the issues. We 
understand that it is past time for us to be able to have a pathway to 
citizenship. It is past time that DACA Dreamers, like my own husband, 
have access to healthcare. They are healthcare workers, they are 
teachers, and during the pandemic they kept you and me alive. This is 
exactly why I applaud President Biden's administration and this 
proposal to finally provide healthcare to those who every single year 
provide more than $9.4 billion of tax revenue to this country we love.

  This is exactly why standing here as a Member of the Congressional 
Progressive Caucus, as the daughter of a woman who crossed the border 
when she was pregnant with me in her first trimester--a woman who said 
to me, Delia, water was just a privilege. It was the ability to be able 
to keep on walking and recognizing that I needed you to have the life I 
never had. I needed you to wear your first pair of shoes before the age 
of seven, unlike me. I needed you to be able to get more than a third 
grade education. I risked everything in 1,811 miles of desert, walking 
40 years ago so that you, inside my womb, could be born in a country 
where you would have the opportunities I never had.
  That woman today is a citizen because of amnesty of 1987. One thing 
that woman never imagined was that her daughter, that life she fought 
so hard to keep alive in the Rio Grande, would be standing before you 
today in the same fight for immigration reform that so many for the 
last 40 years have had.
  This is why we understand that we have to get past parties. We have 
to be in a position to be able to expand healthcare coverage to people 
regardless of their legal status.
  As Congressman Carter said, we need to recognize that it is actually 
quite more affordable to provide preventative care than to care for 
someone when they are nearly dying in a hospital, which is exactly what 
we saw in the State of Illinois.
  By expanding healthcare coverage to people in Illinois, hospitals no 
longer have to take in people who are dying because they didn't get 
preventive care. This is why this proposal and this proposed rule will 
make such a difference--not just to Boris, but to all of those children 
that came so young and are no longer 13, 14, 15, they are 38, 39.
  It has been the honor of my life to be sworn into the U.S. Congress. 
I recognize the responsibility we have and the commitment of the 
Congressional Progressive Caucus to ensure that we stop talking about 
immigration reform and do something about it.
  Mr. Speaker, I am sick and tired of going back home and having to 
look at people that look like me, that carry my blood, and tell them: 
Maybe next Congress. Maybe next time. Maybe convince this person or 
convince the other.
  It is past time that this country that I love, that I was born in, 
where I get to serve in Congress as the first Latina from the Midwest 
that proudly I represent, that we finally do what is right and what we 
all know is not just a moral obligation. It is also one that allows us 
to be able to continue to contribute and see the economic development 
and the contributions of our immigrants here in this country.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank all of my colleagues who have joined tonight's 
Progressive Caucus Special Order hour. What is absolutely clear to me 
is that the power of our collective voices, united in making 
comprehensive immigration reform and universal healthcare a reality 
now, not later--and not only for some while other members of the 
immigrant community suffer--must be our responsibility. I know that 
when there is a will there is always a way.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

[[Page H1879]]

  

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