Early Edge California Responds to the Supreme Court Ruling on the “Public Charge Rule”
Early Edge California is saddened to learn of the Supreme Court ruling upholding the federal government’s decision to deny permanent residency to immigrants who have used various public benefits for which they are legally eligible.
By restricting access to benefits such as Medicaid, housing assistance, and food stamps, the “public charge rule” will lead to greater stress and trauma as well as poorer health and academic outcomes for young children during a critical time in their cognitive development.
In California, this legal change will increase the number of uninsured individuals, reversing the tremendous gains in access to care that the State has made in the last five years. The Institute for Community Health estimates that as many as 455,000 children, some of whom have chronic health conditions such as diabetes, asthma or epilepsy, could leave MediCal as the result of this ruling. In Los Angeles County alone, up to 18,000 families, many of them with children, could lose housing assistance. Childcare assistance is still available for families, but their fear around the rule may stop them from seeking it out.
Early Edge California Executive Director Patricia Lozano says, “The public charge rule targets some of our country’s most vulnerable populations. It targets innocent children, and places enormous barriers in their path towards leading healthy, happy young lives. As an immigrant myself, I’m deeply disappointed in the Supreme Court ruling. I believe that immigrants are part of what makes California great.”
Early Edge California joins Governor Newsom and Attorney General Xavier Becerra in pledging to continue to advocate against efforts to unfairly target and persecute immigrant families and their children.
A list of immigration services providers is available on California’s Department of Social Services website. We encourage you to share it with individuals you know who might benefit from this support.