Agency backs care for illegal immigrant moms

By Devona Walker

Published: October 12, 2007

ADA — Despite pending immigration enforcement reform, the state will soon provide prenatal care to undocumented immigrant women who are pregnant.

Members of the Oklahoma Health Care Authority voted 6-1 Thursday to approve the rule change.

Now, undocumented women are prohibited from Medicaid prenatal services. The rule takes effect Jan.1.

The financial impact of the decision is about $3 million a year, with $1.19 million coming from the state.

State health care officials say the rule change ultimately will save money by reducing the need for postnatal care.

"I am very pleased with the vote,” said Michael Fogarty, the authority's chief executive officer. "This has been a high priority on the part of medical providers and advocates of children.”

The lone dissenting vote came from Board Chairman Lyle Roggow, an economic development director from Duncan.

"Basically, it came down to fiscal responsibilities, and these are illegal aliens,” Roggow said. "I felt like I was being a steward of the taxpayers' money.”

State Rep. Randy Terrill, R-Moore — co-author of HB 1804, Oklahoma's immigration enforcement legislation that goes into effect Nov. 1 — also opposed the rule change.

"It clearly runs contrary to state legislative intent,” Terrill said, adding that HB 1804 is designed to reduce "welfare benefits” for illegal immigrants.

Terrill said the Health Care Authority has unsuccessfully attempted to extend prenatal coverage to undocumented women through the Legislature for two years. Thursday's vote was an attempt to circumvent state law, he said.

"They ought to be working with me to reduce or eliminate welfare benefits for illegal immigrants, not expand them,” he said.

For every dollar cut from prenatal care programs, the journal estimates a $3.33 increase in the cost of postnatal care and $4.63 in incremental long-term cost.

At Numbers USA, anti-illegal immigration think tank, the primary concern is the automatic citizenship offered to these children and, more indirectly, their parents. It says the 14th Amendment — essentially granting citizenship to any child born on American soil — is being misinterpreted to include the children of illegal immigrants.

The children, often referred to as "anchor babies,” provide an enticement for illegal immigration into the U.S, said Rosemary Jenks, director of government relations for the group.

"The fact is that when the child turns 18, they can then sponsor their relatives for permanent U.S. residency,” Jenks said. "I know that's a long way off... but there are people who come here just to have children on U.S. soil.”

It is estimated that 300,000 U.S. citizens are born annually to illegal alien parents. The Oklahoma Health Care Authority reports it is delivering 2,767 babies each year to illegal parents.

Though Numbers USA disputes the validity of citizenship being granted to those children, it stops short of saying the government should deny prenatal care.

"The enticement is the citizenship, not the prenatal care,” Jenks said. "Would we deny prenatal services to pregnant, undocumented women? No,” Jenks said. "There are just some things that as a civilized society we are compelled to do.”

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