Photo Credit: Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times
Background: Illinois has become a leader in providing healthcare coverage to residents. In the last five years,l egislators passed two Medicaid-like programs for immigrants. One program (Health Benefits for Immigrant Seniors) focuses on seniors ages 65 and older, and the other (Health Benefits for Immigrant Adults) covers adults ages 42-64.
The issue: This year, Governor JB Pritzker is proposing eliminating funding for the Health Benefits for Immigrant Adults program for immigrants ages 42-64, which would effectively end lifesaving care and chronic health management for 33,000 Illinoisans.
The Chicago Sun-Times spoke to Julio, a POWER-PAC IL father, and Raymundo – two out of the nearly 33,000 people who could lose lifesaving health coverage. The HBIA program has helped Julio receive lifesaving treatment for his stomach cancer.
“If the cancer reappears years later, I would not be able to pay for the medicine or any other service that I would need to do exams,” Julio said in Spanish. “It would be terminal.
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