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This order comes after a group of US citizens sued the Trump administration, arguing that this is a new form of “family separation.”
The lawsuit, filed in US District Court in Portland, Oregon, claims that the proclamation will bar hundreds of thousands of immigrants from coming to the United States, and as a result, could separate families who are immigrating via family-sponsored visas.
Justice Action Center spokesperson Esther Sung said she was encouraged by the court’s decision in a statement. “The ban would separate families and cut two-thirds of green-card-based immigration starting tonight, were the ban not stopped. It’s egregious that President Trump is attempting to flout the will of Congress and squeeze through a complete overhaul of the nation’s immigration laws without anyone noticing.”
“Today’s decision highlights the urgency of blocking this health care ban before it causes irreparable damage to our community and those we serve,” Carmen Rubio, the executive director of Latino Network, said in a statement.
The proclamation is among a string of sweeping changes that could dramatically curb legal immigration to the United States. President Donald Trump issued the proclamation in October, saying, “immigrants who enter this country should not further saddle our healthcare system, and subsequently American taxpayers, with higher costs.”
According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, in 2017, three-quarters of the 27.4 million uninsured people under age 65 were US citizens.
Visa applicants would have to prove they would be covered by an approved health insurance within 30 days of entry into the US or possess the financial means to “pay for reasonably foreseeable medical costs.” The new requirement could make it more difficult for people to immigrate to the US, particularly if they do not have the financial means.
Accepted health insurance includes employer-sponsored and family coverage plans, unsubsidized individual health plans, and short-term plans. Medicaid or Affordable Care Act subsidies do not qualify as “approved health insurance” under the proclamation.
CNN has reached out to the White House for comment.
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