The expansion of health care for DACA recipients brings expected relief, but concerns remain

Nedy Velazquez was brought to the United States from Mexico by her parents at the age of 7. She grew up in Escondido and said she is proud of her San Diego roots.

“You know, I’m a representative of San Diegan, West Coast, all the way,” she said with a laugh.

A spleen operation in childhood weakened her immune system. Uninsured for most of her life, that vulnerability fueled her anxiety, especially during the pandemic.

“It was a very scary time because yeah, I didn’t have access to healthcare. And I thought, if I get COVID, I can’t afford the ER visits,” Velazquez said.

Velazquez is a recipient of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Act, also known as DACA, and has advocated for expanding health care for immigrants for years. She said the expansion of the Affordable Care Act to DACA recipients — announced by the White House on Friday — is long overdue.

Beginning November 1, the estimated 8,500 DACA recipients living in San Diego County will be eligible for coverage.

“I know a lot of people will feel so much relief,” Velazquez said.

Many DACA recipients, like Velazquez, get health insurance through their jobs. This is evident from a recent study by the National Immigration Law Center 27% report being uninsured.

Critics call the Biden administration’s rule an unfair cost. And a possible strategic move to boost President Biden’s support, especially among Hispanic voters, whose approval has gained traction turned down since he took office.

US representative Juan Vargas(D-San Diego) said it makes no sense to have an unhealthy population that is uninsured

“The bigger the group the better, especially young people like this, I mean it brings the costs down for everyone,” he said.

DACA recipients typically delay preventive or routine medical care, he said, leading to unnecessary costs down the road.

“Many of them are afraid they’re going to face some sort of catastrophic problem that could wipe out the funding they’ve built up,” he said.

Tom Wong, founding director of the US Immigration Policy Center at UC San Diego, called the rule progress and said the next step is education.

“More than half of uninsured DACA recipients believe they are ineligible for health insurance because of their immigration status,” Wong said. “The heavy lifting now focuses on communicating eligibility… amid continued legal uncertainty surrounding DACA.”

Although a estimated 100,000 uninsured DACA recipients are expected to enroll in the Affordable Care Act in November. Velazquez is among advocates who believe some will hesitate to apply out of fear.

“We are concerned that this could impact our ability to apply for citizenship when that time comes,” she said. “It’s like trying not to get any kind of help because that could have a negative effect on your application.”