Underneath a grey sky on Friday morning, dozens of undocumented people and their allies gathered outside the statehouse in Annapolis. They chanted and urged their senators to pass a bill that would expand health insurance access to 275,000 undocumented people across Maryland.
“It is essential to do cancer screenings for me every six months. All the women in my family have had a history of cancer,” shared Olga Blair of Nicaragua, a current Baltimore City resident who had to flee violence in Nicaragua with her family and is undocumented. “Without regular checkups, I fear every pain in my body… I fear that it will be found too late as was the case with my Mother.”
Blair is without health insurance and is a mother of three. Many shared stories that were similar. In some cases, they described turning to “holistic” doctors and being left to medicate on their own.
The Access to Care Act, introduced by Del. Joseline A. Pena-Melnyk,a Democrat representing parts of Prince George’s and Anne Arundel county, would allow people with any immigration status to apply for insurance through the Maryland Health Benefit Exchange Fund, commonly called the ‘Open Marketplace.’ The bill has passed the House with a 100-38 vote but is stalled in the Senate. Among its supporters are the open marketplace fund and Maryland Hospital Association.
“Sickness does not care about your immigration status. But our healthcare system does. And we have been excluded for a long time,” said Jeanette Kenne, a grandmother who lives in a sixth-floor apartment in Prince George’s County.
Kenne said she is undocumented and has a plethora of health problems, like diabetes, blood clots in the lungs and hip pain, that make it difficult to care for her grandchildren.
“I can't begin to describe the pain, trauma and emotional stress. I go through every single day,” she said.
Kenne wants to be able to buy affordable health insurance, something that is out of access to her in the state right now. While some places, like California and the District of Columbia, have expanded Medicaid to cover undocumented people, Maryland has not.
Under the Affordable Care Act open marketplace, people who lack a legal immigration status are ineligible to buy health insurance – that means that if the Access to Care Act is passed, the state will then have to submit a waiver to the federal government. Maryland advocates are hopeful though, Washington State received a waiver to expand access on their open marketplace in December 2022.
The bill wouldn’t go into effect until at least 2025, and one-time start up costs would be around $500,000. In a report prepared by the MHBE, they estimated that for the calendar year 2024, the net cost to the state for the program is $90.3 million which could increase up to $176.2 million for 2027.
The Senate is concerned about the financial cost.
During a press conference held Friday, Senate Finance Committee leader Sen. Melony Griffith, a Democrat representing Prince George’s county, said that they’re still studying the issue.
“One of the things that we don’t want to do is put the cart before the horse,” said Griffith, adding that the senate wants to be sure they are addressing “the needs of our most vulnerable… without overburdening the state’s fiscal resources.”
Griffith directed instead to Senate Bill 806, a bill passed by the Senate earlier this session that directs the open marketplace fund and health department to conduct a study into affordable healthcare options for Maryland’s undocumented people.
The Access to Care Act is stalled in committee and has until April 10 to go through the Senate, if at this point, it goes forward at all.
But for the people gathered on the Lawyer’s Mall on Friday, the time for studying has run out.
“Please support us in the fight for access to health care, so that people like me can see a doctor,” said Kenne, speaking on behalf of undocumented people in Maryland. “I don't want to die regretting we voted you to represent us. We need your support now. Not later.”
