NYC City Hospital Chief Calls for Coverage of Immigrants

Kevin Sack of The New York Times reports that Alan D. Aviles, president of the city’s Health and Hospitals Corporation, called for congressional conferees to lift the existing five-year ban on federal health benefits for legal immigrants. Neither plans by Congress or the House do so. Aviles said that illegal immigrants should be able to buy health coverage on new government exchanges at full cost.

“With 12 million undocumented persons in the country, someone’s going to need a doctor,” Aviles said. “They’re going to show up somewhere. The cost of the care is ultimately going to fall on American taxpayers and by letting the undocumented buy into the exchange you’re going to bring those costs down for everybody.”

What do you think of Aviles stance on illegal immigrant healthcare?

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