Lawmaker: Funds risked when state provides treatment to pregnant illegal immigrants

The head of Oklahoma's Medicaid program said Tuesday the state faces no risk of losing federal money by allowing illegal immigrants to receive prenatal care, despite a state lawmaker's statements to the contrary.

Mike Fogarty, chief executive officer of the Oklahoma Health Care Authority, said his agency "has specific federal approval and encouragement to reimburse health care providers for prenatal care services to unborn children regardless of their mother's documentation status.”

Rep. Randy Terrill said providing that care could endanger millions of dollars for health care programs in the state.

Terrill, R-Moore, said legislators never approved a rule allowing the Health Care Authority to include pregnant illegal immigrants in the state Medicaid program. It was created through the agency's internal rule-making process, he said.

"As a result, the Oklahoma Health Care Authority may soon be committing Medicaid fraud by billing the federal government for services provided to illegal aliens that the Legislature never authorized,” Terrill said.

Fogarty said Terrill is mistaken.

"There is absolutely no commission of Medicaid fraud and federal funds related to the prenatal care program are not in danger,” Fogarty said.

House Bill 1804, the state's immigration law which Terrill authored, makes it clear the Health Care Authority cannot provide medical services to an illegal immigrant and must verify immigration status of anyone over the age of 14, Fogarty said. The agency is complying with that law, which took effect in November, he said.

The law does not specifically address the coverage of prenatal services for an unborn child, Fogarty said. The federal State Children's Health Insurance Program defines a child as an individual from conception to age 19. The regulation also defines child health assistance to include prenatal care, he said.

"The Bush administration recognized the positive public policy associated with providing prenatal care for these babies and began encouraging states to adopt this option in 2002,” Fogarty said.

Terrill and Rep. John Wright, R- Broken Arrow, have filed a measure, House Concurrent Resolution 1064, that would overturn the Health Care Authority's rules.

Terrill said providing prenatal care to illegal immigrant mothers creates a dangerous legal precedent because it blurs the line between the concepts of "personhood” and "citizenship.”