Presidential Proclamation Suspending the Entry of Legal Immigrants Not Covered by Approved Health Insurance and Subsequent Court Challenge

On October 4, 2019, President Trump issued a proclamation suspending the entry of immigrants who “will financially burden the U.S. healthcare system,” effective at 12:01 am (ET) on November 3, 2019.  With some exceptions, the proclamation held that immigrants must establish to the satisfaction of a consular officer that they will be covered by approved health insurance within 30 days of entry into the United States or that they possess the financial resources to pay for reasonably foreseeable medical costs. This measure prevents legal immigrants from receiving immigrant visas if they lack the immediate financial ability to purchase health insurance outside of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) exchanges. Inability to meet this requirement will result in the denial of an otherwise approvable visa application.

Prospective immigrants had been scrambling to figure out how to get the necessary coverage, navigating a complex healthcare bureaucracy that has, for the most part, not previously catered to those who are not yet in the country.

However, on Wednesday, October 30, 2019, a class-action suit was filed in Portland, Oregon, to bar President Trump from restricting visas for immigrants without health insurance. It applies to people seeking immigrant visas from abroad, not those already in the country, and doesn’t affect asylum seekers, refugees or children.  On November 2, 2019, the Court issued a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO), which prevents the administration from implementing the proclamation for the next 28 days.

Iandoli Desai and Cronin, P.C. will continue to monitor the ongoing litigation regarding the health insurance proclamation and will provide updates as they become available.