According to the Obama administration, information that the applicants provide while applying for Obamacare or the Affordable Care Act (ACA), will not be used to enforce immigration laws. The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) memo states that the information that is obtained to determine eligibility of the applicants for Obamacare will not be used by the agency to enforce immigration laws against the applicants or on the members of their families.
Information that the applicants provide will be used only to determine eligibility and for the purpose of administering the Obamacare program. Such information will also not be used to verify the immigration status of the applicants or their family members.
ICE spokeswoman Gillian Christensen explained that this practice is not unusual. She said that the information that applicants seeking health coverage provide will not be used for removal purposes or for immigration enforcement. She added that ICE focuses on detaining immigrants who are criminals and the ones who violate the US immigration laws.
People living in the United States legally alone can apply for Obamacare and gain access to lower health care rates. Though the undocumented immigrants are ineligible for Obamacare, certain undocumented immigrants are eligible for coverage under this program. Immigrants and Latinos in mixed status families believe that the information they provide while signing up for Obamacare will be used against them or their family members who are out of status.
This healthcare program requires the applicants to provide personal information to view the pricing options. They need to provide information about their immigration status but the memo issued by the ICE explains that the agency will not use that information to enforce immigration laws.
ICE released this memo as a reassurance to the ones who are not willing to provide personal information on Healthcare.gov, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) website. However, there are many who are against this program and they say that this practice indicates that the Obama administration is not focusing on immigration enforcement.