Broad Rejection of New “Public Charge” Policy Targeting Immigrants – This week, the Trump administration published a new rule that considers a “public charge” immigrants who have applied for housing subsidies, Medicaid and Medicare. This would disqualify many from permanent residency and citizenship. The news caused alarm and widespread rejection among various sectors of the country that are calling for their objections to be heard during a two-month public comment period. José López Zamorano has the details from Washington.
California Extends Healthcare Enrollment Period for Residents – Ahead of the federal government, California will begin the open enrollment period for health insurance subsidized by the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare, starting next week. The state government is extending the sign up period to four months and also launching a million-dollar campaign to maintain the state’s status as a national example of successful healthcare reform. Ruben Tapia interviews a family in Los Angeles that has already purchased their new insurance policy.
Former Immigration Judge Criticizes Trump’s Pressure on the Courts – After serving for more than two decades as an immigration judge in Florida and Puerto Rico, Rafael Ortiz Segura, frustrated with the Trump administration’s intense pressure to speed up deportation trials, resigned and became a defense lawyer for immigrants. On the program Línea Abierta with Samuel Orozco, Ortiz Segura, former general counsel for Puerto Rico’s Immigration and Naturalization Service, reflects on the legal catastrophe entailed by the quota policy imposed on immigration courts by the White House.
