Lawsuit seeks details on Medicare immigrant curbs
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A senior citizen advocacy group is suing the Trump administration for details on how it's going to implement a new policy that prohibits certain legal immigrants from receiving Medicare benefits.
Why it matters: Last year's GOP tax-and-spending law stripped coverage from an estimated 100,000 immigrants covered by Medicare.
- Federal officials haven't released guidance on how the prohibition will be enforced, according to the Center for Medicare Advocacy, which filed the lawsuit in a federal court in Connecticut last week.
Driving the news: Refugees, immigrants who've survived trafficking or domestic violence and individuals allowed to temporarily enter the country for emergency reasons starting in January will be dropped from Medicare.
- The government already is turning away new applicants in those categories.
- The Center for Medicare Advocacy submitted a Freedom of Information Act request in September asking Medicare and Social Security officials to release records related to the changes. But the government denied the request for quick processing and hasn't sent any records, CMA says.
- The lawsuit seeks the records before the current period where enrollees have a final chance to switch their Medicare coverage on March 31.
What they're saying: The lack of guidance may keeping eligible seniors out of Medicare, CMA argued in its complaint.
- "Every day that passes without transparency increases the likelihood that eligible individuals will be deterred from enrolling, leading to permanent financial liability or a total loss of access to health benefits," the lawsuit says.
The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services told Axios it does not comment on litigation. The Social Security Administration did not respond to a request for comment.
