Earlier this year, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and (DOS) began implementing its new Public Charge rule nationwide which required officers to make a prospective determination as to whether an applicant for a green card is likely to become a public charge.
See our previous article for further details:
Because of this rule many intending immigrants have refused to enroll in Medicaid or other publicly funded health coverage, or testing and treatment for COVID-19 out of fear of being labeled a “public charge.”
On Wednesday, July 29, 2020 a U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York issued a preliminary injunction and temporary stay which means that both DHS and DOS cannot enforce, apply, implement or treat effectively its Final rule on “Inadmissibility on Public Charge Ground,” for any period during which there is a declared national health emergency in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Court noted that any policy that deters residents from seeking testing and treatment for COVID-19 increases the risk of infection for such residents and the public. Furthermore, the government’s interest in effectuating the Rule fails to measure up to the gravity of this global pandemic that continues to threaten the lives and economic well-being of America’s residents.
I sincerely hope that both DHS and DOL will abide by the Court’s ruling. This will allow intending immigrants to seek the appropriate medical treatment, without having to worry about how that would impact their prospects of obtaining a green card.