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Webinars MedicaidHealth Information and Data Sharing

Immigrant Health: The Role and Impact of Medicaid, HIPAA, and the Public Charge Doctrine

April 25, 2019

Overview

The high cost of health care and the increasing decline in health insurance coverage are a concern for all people living in America. But for immigrants, who have extremely low rates of insurance coverage compared to U.S.-born populations, the situation is even more precarious. Low incomes, lack of insurance, concern over immigration enforcement, and other barriers pose serious threats to immigrant health. That, in turn, poses a risk to the broader public health. Federal and state laws impact immigrants’ access to care and, therefore, public health. Attend this webinar to examine a few of the laws and policies that create barriers to immigrants’ access to care.


In this webinar, presenters will:

  • Provide an overview of Medicaid coverage for immigrants, including who qualifies and whether applicants must provide information on their citizenship or immigration status;
  • Review the Trump administration’s proposed rule change to the Public Charge Doctrine restricting immigrants from obtaining legal residency if they have utilized public benefits, including Medicaid;
  • Outline the applicability of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) to undocumented immigrants and whether citizenship status constitutes protected health information (PHI) protected from disclosure; and
  • Discuss the implications of real and perceived threats of citizenship status disclosure on public health, as well as strategies for alleviating immigrants’ concerns.

Moderator:

  • Kerri Lowrey, J.D., Deputy Director and Director of Grants and Research, Network for Public Health Law, Eastern Region Office

Presenters:

  • Priscilla Huang, J.D., Senior Attorney, National Health Law Program
  • Dorothy Singletary, Student Attorney, Public Health Law Clinic, University of Maryland Carey School of Law
  • Laura Macherelli, Student Attorney, Public Health Law Clinic, University of Maryland Carey School of Law

You may qualify for CLE credit. ASLME is an approved provider of continuing legal education credits in several states ASLME will also apply for CLE credits in other states upon request. An email from ASLME regarding CLE credits will be sent to attendees following the webinar.

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