On April 16, The New York Times reported that 50 million Medicaid recipients will have to produce proof of citizenship in order to continue to be eligible. This new requirement was signed into law by President Bush early this year and will take effedct on July 1. The controversy stems from concern that many people were never issued a birth certificate, including African Americans and Native Americans.
In fact, it was not uncommon for rural Americans to have babies at home, rather than a hospital, and thus a birth certificate was never issued. And while slavery was abolished, many African Americans in the 1900s had few rights and were not allowed in public. Thus, that population may have an increased amount of persons who were born in the fields and never issued birth certificates. Native American culture will also experience issues with birth certificates.
Estimates on how much this will save the government and how many people will be negatively affected vary widely depending on the partisan think-tank composing the data. But there is no dispute that money will be saved but that many people will also be adversely affected. I guess it all comes down to which you consider of more value? As a good Demublican, I am still very baffled by the whole immigration issue. I do believe that illegal immigrants are problematic for public entities such as public schools and other state and federal services, such as Medicaid. However, I also know that all of these services and programs (schools and Medicaid) have many more problems not related to immigration.
But what of the “poor, huddled masses yearning to be free?” When I ask the question “What would Jesus do?” I am not convinced that he would want us to box up all these people and mail them back to the Hell-hole of a squaller that many of them risked their lives to get away from.
I do know one thing, despite the easy answers that our extremes shout, there is no easy answer. Seems to me a middle road will be the best place to start. And I think we would all be served well by constantly asking ourselves: “What is the right, good, ethical and Christian thing to do here.” But maybe many of us would not like that answer.
In fact, it was not uncommon for rural Americans to have babies at home, rather than a hospital, and thus a birth certificate was never issued. And while slavery was abolished, many African Americans in the 1900s had few rights and were not allowed in public. Thus, that population may have an increased amount of persons who were born in the fields and never issued birth certificates. Native American culture will also experience issues with birth certificates.
Estimates on how much this will save the government and how many people will be negatively affected vary widely depending on the partisan think-tank composing the data. But there is no dispute that money will be saved but that many people will also be adversely affected. I guess it all comes down to which you consider of more value? As a good Demublican, I am still very baffled by the whole immigration issue. I do believe that illegal immigrants are problematic for public entities such as public schools and other state and federal services, such as Medicaid. However, I also know that all of these services and programs (schools and Medicaid) have many more problems not related to immigration.
But what of the “poor, huddled masses yearning to be free?” When I ask the question “What would Jesus do?” I am not convinced that he would want us to box up all these people and mail them back to the Hell-hole of a squaller that many of them risked their lives to get away from.
I do know one thing, despite the easy answers that our extremes shout, there is no easy answer. Seems to me a middle road will be the best place to start. And I think we would all be served well by constantly asking ourselves: “What is the right, good, ethical and Christian thing to do here.” But maybe many of us would not like that answer.
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