Scholarly Commons

“Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor...” but We May Not Give Them Health Care: How Federal and State Policies Affect the Health Care of Hispanic Immigrants

Two of the most important issues to Americans today are healthcare and immigration, and for Hispanic immigrants, these two systems and sets of policies collide and interact in complex ways that have significant effects on their lives. These systems are influenced by both federal and state-level policy decisions, though the federal policy climate is typically more salient than policies set at the state-level. So that begs the question: what affects, if any, do state-level health and immigration policies have on Hispanic immigrants, specifically on their access to healthcare and health insurance? Through an in-depth examination of several state-level policies and the rates of Hispanic immigrants’ health care usage and health insurance coverage in those states, this study aims to determine the effects of inclusive, exclusive, and moderate state-level policies on Hispanic immigrants’ health care in the context of an exclusionary and restrictive federal policy climate.