New legislation introduced in the Rhode Island General Assembly would allow "illegal immigrants" to obtain healthcare coverage, according to the House GOP and activists in the state -- and while the bill sponsors say it's in accordance with federal law, opponents are questioning its purpose.
House Bill 5988, which was introduced by Representative Jeremiah O'Grady for the Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner for the state to more fully comply with with Affordable Care Act included language that stipulates "eligible individuals" would be "residents of the state."
Terry Gorman, with the Rhode Islanders for Immigration Law Enforcement, reached out to the House policy analysts on the blanket eligibility terminology.
"I talked with Richard Fleury about this interpretation. His answer is, that as written, it would include anyone who is a resident of the state - which could include illegal immigrants," said Louis Tetreault, a senior policy analyst in the House Minority Office.
Legislation - and Questions
Introduced by Representative O' Grady on March 26, the bill was referred to the House Corporations Committee, and held for further study.
Tarah Provencal, the Associate Director for Planning, Policy, and Regulation in the Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner, explained its intent -- including the eligibility language change.
"Proposed House bill 5988 is intended to amend Rhode Island's current laws on Individual, Small Group and Large Group insurance coverage to comply with the market rule requirements of the Affordable Care Act," said Provencal.
"The definition of "eligible individuals" means an individual resident of Rhode Island. The legislation is intended to comply with federal law and federal law does not require a citizenship test for the purchase of policies sold outside of the Exchange (45 C.F.R. section 147.104(a)). No public funds are involved in the purchase of health insurance outside of the Exchange," continued Provencal. "The purchase of health insurance off the Exchange is a private market purchase similar to many other purchases of goods and services which both citizens and non-citizens may purchase."
"How many illegal immigrants are going to purchase insurance off the exchange -- what's the exchange for? Isn't it for people who don't have insurance - period? This raises more questions than answers," said Gorman. "Why did they have to change the language about eligible individuals. It would have been fine to say 'eligible individuals' as-is, which is to say illegal immigrants would have been ineligible for coverage under exchanges under the ACA," said Gorman.
Gorman said he was concerned about what he perceived to be the confusion around the process -- and transparency.
"I called up the members of the [Corporations] committee to ask them about this eligibility clause, and they weren't able to answer my questions," said Gorman. "So what they're saying is they're looking to a technicality that people don't have to prove citizenship when purchasing private insurance. Is this a slippery slope to provide coverage through the exchange and that means that taxpayers would subsidize illegal immigrants."
"This is reminiscent of 38 Studios," continued Gorman. "Remember how all the legislators said they didn't know what they were voting on for 38 Studios? What if this comes up at the eleventh hour? How many legislators know anything about this?"
Pam Gencarella with Rhode Island taxpayer group OSTPA raised concerns as well.
"We fully believe that the drafting of the legislation, which was purportedly requested by the Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner, is clearly intended to change the eligibility requirements for an individual, opening the door very specifically to all “residents” of the state regardless of their legal status. This change is very broad and certainly looks as if it is a requirement for insurers offering individual coverage to provide coverage to illegal immigrant," said Gencarella
"This bill is drafted very poorly if in fact it is not meant to provide health insurance to people who are not in the country legally. It also begs another question: does this lead to taxpayer subsidized insurance coverage via RI's Health Insurance Exchange or Medicaid for anyone who is not here legally? We know RI’s elected leaders have ignored the impact of being a sanctuary state and some of our leaders actually support providing myriad benefits to illegal immigrants," continued Gencarella.
"Look at the explanation provided on the bill. It refers only to moving responsibilities from one state department to another and to bring RI law into conformity with the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). It is not unusual for the legislative explanation to be misleading regarding the actual impact of any bill that it seeks to explain in short form. And this bill's explanation is a good example of this shortfall," said Gencarella. "The sponsors owe all taxpayers a straight answer."
Related Slideshow: Ten Bills to Watch in 2015 General Assembly
The last day for bill introductions in the Rhode Island House of Representatives is slated for February 12, but things should really begin heating up one month following, when Governor Gina Raimondo is due to present her FY16 budget proposal to the chamber -- and members have a new sense of the fiscal realities facing the state, and what the Governor will be pushing for.
With the 2015 General Assembly just underway (and over four months to go), below is a list of 10 of the top bills facing the General Assembly now, or expected to come.
Will marijuana legalization see daylight -- or even success -- in RI in 2015?
Advocates are buoyed by Governor Gina Raimondo's public openness to considering the possibility. As other New England states weigh the prospects of legalization, and Rhode Island faces a budget deficit, proponents are bullish on the potential.
"[Governor] Raimondo's recent comments — made very early in the legislative session — about marijuana policy reform being something we should "absolutely" look at sends a clear message to the General Assembly," said Jared Moffat, Director of Regulate RI. "She wants lawmakers to have an open, honest, and serious discussion about this issue."
"Our bill to regulate marijuana like alcohol hasn't been introduced yet, but will be soon," added Moffat. "Polls show a majority of Rhode Islanders are tired of costly and ineffective prohibitionist policies that punish adults for using a substance that is far less harmful than alcohol. With the huge loss in gambling revenue, lawmakers will be looking for a way to close the budget deficit, and marijuana consumers are one of the few groups that wouldn't mind paying more taxes."
The slots-parlor-turned-casino-with-table games in Lincoln (through voter approval in 2012) wants to take another step towards full fledged destination status with a hotel, in order to compete with looming gambling on the horizon in Massachusetts.
"We expect there will be a bill, but we've always believed the conversation should start with the town first," said Twin River spokesperson Patti Doyle, about the prospects of a hotel being broached during the session.
"There's a meeting in Lincoln with residents on [February] 24th. After the public hearing, we will approach the Lincoln delegation about the possibility of bill introduction."
"We're looking for the repeal of the prohibition of a hotel, which exists in the current master contract between UTGR and the state," noted Doyle.
Mattiello pointed to RI being just one of 13 states that has an income tax on social security, while Sasse questioned its fiscal impact -- and its impact on job creation.
Representatives Patricia Serpa and Bob Craven have already introduced legislation push for Mattiello's proposal -- look to see how the rank and file follow suit and if opposition will arise at the Assembly to it.
The bill recently introduced by State Representative David Bennett -- a psychiatric nurse -- to equip and train school nurses and officials in grades 6-12 to administer Narcan, the antidote for opioid overdoses, was proposed at the same time the RI Department of Health announced that Narcan was administered on youth under the age of 18 over 50 times in 2014.
"RI is on the cutting edge with this, before we congratulate ourselves too much, we're leading the nation in drug and alcohol use," said Dr. Jody Rich, at the Miriam Hospital. "I haven't checked the stats, but we're up there. We need to try everything we possibly we can. There were 1000 overdose deaths in MA in 2013, we had 200 in RI. In this day and age you don't want to see young people doing heroin, oxycontin, vicodin -- much of which is being cut with the fentanyl."
The proposal is slated for a hearing on Wednesday February 4 with the House Committee on Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW).
Will Rhode Island ban smoking at state beaches in 2015?
"Discarding cigarette butts, cigar butts and tobacco waste on beach sand is not only unsightly and unclean, it can be particularly hazardous to small children, who may handle or ingest this material,” said Sen. Erin P. Lynch (D-Dist. 31, Warwick, Cranston), who noted that cigarette butts contain 200 known poisons, many of which are known to cause cancer, in her legislative proposal.
The legislation would make smoking or disposing of smoking products illegal on or within 20 feet of all beaches under the control of the Department of Environmental Management. Violators would be guilty of a misdemeanor and subject to a mandatory fine of between $150 and $1,000 for a first offense, between $500 and $1,000 for a second conviction and between $750 and $1,000 for subsequent offenses. In addition to fines, the court may, as a condition of probation, order violators to spend eight hours collecting litter at state beaches.
The current moratorium on state aid to school construction in Rhode Island set to expire in May, and Senator Ryan Pearson introduced legislation to reform the process through which school construction projects are approved and provide a designated funding stream to meet the needs of modern public education facilities.
“This is a starting point for discussion on the critical issue of school construction aid,” said Sen. Pearson (D – Dist. 19, Cumberland, Lincoln). “This issue is a priority in the Senate for good reason. It is absolutely imperative that we get this right and meet the educational needs of students across the state while ensuring a sustainable funding strategy.”
The legislation, based on the work of a 2014 Senate task force, would enhance the funding, structure and functions of the Rhode Island Health and Educational Building Corporation (RIHEBC). The agency’s board would be reformed, and it would be designated as the financing and administering entity for school construction projects. RIHEBC would allocate funding of annual revenues for projects based on need, priority and cost effectiveness.
Spearheaded by House Minority leaders, such a bill would most likely allow cities and towns to not adhere to the HUD standards set forth in RhodeMap.
“Many Rhode Islanders, all of the legislative members of the House Minority and many city and town councils have expressed concern with the impact that RhodeMap RI may have on local comprehensive plans and zoning ordinances. We decided to address those concerns.” said House Minority Leader Brian Newberry.
After newly elected Governor Gina Raimondo issued an executive order calling for ethics and integrity in state government, members of the General Assembly began following suit -- to put a constitutional amendment question before voters establishing the makeup and powers of the Ethics Commission and specifically its authority over members of the General Assembly.
“The people’s trust in its government is the glue that binds a people to its government,” said Senator James Sheehan. “Restoring the Ethics Commission jurisdiction over legislators has become central to establishing that trust.”
Senator Edward O'Neill announced that he was looking to amend the Rhode Island Constitution to give the Ethics Commission greater jurisdiction over the General Assembly, including acts otherwise protected by the “speech in debate” provisions of Article VI, Section 5 of the Constitution.
It would expand a road and bridge revolving fund she created last year with the General Assembly to provide low-interest loans to municipalities for repairs; establish a road and bridge funding formula; launch a so-called green bank for retrofitting buildings and facilities; and create a school building authority to stimulate capital improvements.
Facing a projected $30 million budget shortfall for the coming year, all eyes will be on Governor Gina Raimondo when she unveils her FY16 budget on March 12. Little is known at this time of the new Governor's agenda and budgetary priorities, but the first-time budget proposal, which is historically later the first year of an Administration, means for a shorter period of time for the General Assembly to digest -- and respond.
