The Legislature must pass L.D. 718 and restore access to MaineCare for all immigrants.

In 2016-17, I worked as a Marketplace/MaineCare Navigator and saw firsthand how access to affordable health care ensured that my clients didn’t have to choose between groceries or a life-saving prescription, rent or accessing mental health services. Immigrant families shouldn’t be excluded from the benefits their tax dollars already support.

L.D. 718 is a game-changer for many of my former clients. For example, I helped a family originally from Burundi sort through the piles of paperwork they needed to enroll their children in the Children’s Health Insurance Program. Both parents worked over 80 hours a week as home health aides; their oldest son worked as a grocery store cashier.

While the youngest children were born in Maine and could access MaineCare, neither the parents nor their oldest son qualified for state-federal programs because of their immigration status. A significant portion of the family’s income, including their son’s, went to buying less-than-comprehensive private insurance, and because of restrictions to MaineCare, there was nothing we could do to lessen this huge financial burden.

I couldn’t fully celebrate Medicaid expansion knowing this family and many others were still left behind. I wished, and I know they did tenfold, that they could have saved their paychecks for food, rent or the college their son was so excited to attend. L.D. 718 offers more Mainers the opportunity to achieve greater health outcomes and financial stability. Let’s close the gap and ensure all immigrants have equitable access to essential health benefits.

Catherine Buxton
at-large candidate, Portland Charter Commission
Portland