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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Contact:
Julian Teixeira
jteixeira@nclr.org
(202) 776-1812
Testimony at Senate hearing focused on the contributions of immigrant women and families in creating strong communities
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, Jennifer Ng'andu, Director, Health and Civil Rights Policy Project, Office of Research, Advocacy and Legislation, NCLR (National Council of La Raza), testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee at the hearing “How Comprehensive Immigration Reform Should Address the Needs of Women and Families”. Often missing from the public debate on immigration are the contributions that immigrant families make and their eagerness to take on shared responsibility.
During her testimony, Ng’andu urged members of the Committee to allow immigrant families, who pay their fair share of contributions, to participate in the systems that are fundamental to the infrastructure of American society. Their future health and well-being is important to sustaining the vibrancy of our country
“There are significant mischaracterizations of immigrants’ access to public benefits. Many Americans are largely unaware of the fact that undocumented immigrants are almost entirely banned from most major health insurance and public safety-net programs. Lack of access is often buffered by lower ages, strong presence in the work force and positive health behaviors, ensuring that immigrants use fewer public resources. Immigrants are not only less likely to use public benefits systems, but when they actually do receive access to a program, they tend to use a lower value of benefits, which makes them less expensive to provide for when they are enrolled in programs,” said Ng’andu.
Lower utilization has negative consequences and puts families at severe financial risk. Restrictions that keep immigrant families from accessing public services or purchasing insurance can be devastating when families fall on hard times. Therefore, it is common sense that immigrant families who are paying their fair share be eligible for systems that are integral to maintaining strong communities. “It comes down to a simple adage: penny-wise and pound-foolish. Giving immigrant women and families the tools for full integration now will pay off in their contributions later,” concluded Ng’andu.
NCLR—the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States—works to improve opportunities for Hispanic Americans. For more information on NCLR, please visit www.nclr.org or follow along on Facebook and Twitter.
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