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A Key Goal Of The Affordable Care Act Essay

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A key goal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was to decrease the number of uninsured individuals, many of whom are in low-income families and are minorities (Kaiser Family Foundation 2016). Under the ACA, immigrants who are in the U.S. legally are eligible for coverage through the health insurance marketplace but undocumented immigrants are not (HealthCare.gov) even when using their own money to purchase. There are estimates of 11.1 million undocumented immigrants in the country as of 2014 (Krogstad, Passel, & Cohn 2016). It is estimated that California was home to more than two million undocumented immigrants in 2013. In 2016, California passed SB 10, a bill that would require the California Health Benefit Exchange, which facilitates the enrollment of qualified individuals into health plans, to apply to the United States Department of Health and Human Services for a waiver to allow individuals who are not eligible to obtain health coverage through the Exchange because of their immigration status to obtain coverage from the Exchange (California Legislative Information). This paper will explore California’s SB 10 legislation, its purpose, and how it will seek to serve its undocumented immigrant population and their health needs. Demographics of the undocumented immigrant population in California Undocumented immigrants in California originate from various countries- Mexico, Latin America, Asia, the Pacific Islands, and Africa. The majority of this population reside in

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