NE Legislators pushing LB599 to give Prenatal Care for Illegal Aliens

nebraskaruralhealth.org/2012/02/prenatal-coverage-bill-advances
blogs.creighton.edu/ccsj/2012/02/...vigil-to-restore-prenatal-care
Please anyone in any city please help us stop this bill! ACTION ALERT - URGENT TODAY!! STOP ILLEGAL ALIENS FROM GETTING taxpaid MEDICAL CARE in Nebraska. If you don't want YOUR tax dollars paying for their free/subsidized healthcare and other benefits call/email your senator NOW to VOTE NO on LB599. Sen Kathy Campbell and other pro-illegal alien senators tried getting this pre-natal bill pushed through last year and we stopped it. WE NEED TO STOP IT AGAIN. Find your senator and contact information here http://www.nebraskalegislature.gov/senators/senator_list.php THE BILL IS ON THE FLOOR FOR DEBATE later tonight AND IT SOUNDS LIKE IT WILL BE A CLOSE VOTE......SO IT COMES DOWN TO WHICH SIDE MAKES THE MOST PHONE CALLS/EMAILS. NEBRASKANS vs ILLEGAL ALIENS. Webstream live the floor debate at NETNebraska link.
　
Why stop prenatal care at taxpayer's expense for illegal aliens?
1. The expense falls onto the shoulders of Nebraska citizens and LEGAL immigrants for those who are in our country illegally, who have never paid into our system.
2. Every single dollar that is spent on illegal aliens is a dollar that is NOT SPENT ON CITIZENS and LEGAL IMMIGRANTS.
3. If we pay for their prenatal and other healthcare we then assume the financial responsibility for their welfare benefits for their "United States citizen" child in food stamps, education, medical and welfare monies and other benefits.
4. IT IS A MAGNET that will draw more illegal aliens to our state. Pure and Simple FACT.
5. Providing healthcare to ILLEGAL ALIENS is PROHIBITED by our FEDERAL MEDICAID LAWS. Which is why the federal government FORCED Nebraska HHS to kick these people off the system a couple of years ago. Since then PRO-ILLEGAL ALIEN Senator Kathy Campbell and other PRO-ILLEGAL ALIEN senators have been trying to get a "special" law passed that specifically puts illegal aliens back onto this program!
6. VOTES for this bill will be posted as soon as they are available - SO YOU WILL KNOW WHO TO VOTE OUT OF OFFICE!

LB599
http://www.nebraskalegislature.gov/F...ntro/LB599.pdf

Contact Nebraska Legislature
http://www.nebraskalegislature.gov/

Medicaid to illegals is the biggest drain on Medicare. They need to be deported, not pampered, before they present the taxpayers with more burdens. JMO

Lawmakers advance Nebraska prenatal care bill to restore coverage to illegal immigrants

GRANT SCHULTE Associated Press
First Posted: April 03, 2012 - 11:52 pm
Last Updated: April 03, 2012 - 11:17 pm

LINCOLN, Neb. — A bill that would restore prenatal care coverage to illegal immigrants in Nebraska cleared a first-round vote Tuesday in the Legislature, despite objections from Gov. Dave Heineman.

Lawmakers advanced the measure through the first of three votes late Tuesday, 30-16. Lawmakers will need 30 "yes" votes to override Heineman's likely veto.

Supporters argued that the measure was a moral imperative, while opponents said it would force taxpayers to cover illegal immigrant care. The bill has divided a Legislature that overwhelmingly opposes abortion.

"The unborn child should not be penalized for the actions of his or her parents," said Speaker of the Legislature Mike Flood, who supported the bill. "This is a human life."

Ogallala Sen. Ken Schilz said the measure the bill represented "a crack in the armor of the laws we have in place" to discourage illegal immigration.

"I stand here tonight for those who believe that their tax dollars should not be used for those who want a better life for their offspring at the expense of Nebraska taxpayers," he said.

The bill by Lincoln Sen. Kathy Campbell would direct the Department of Health and Human Services to establish Children's Health Insurance Program coverage for unborn children of mothers who are ineligible for Medicaid.

The mothers were disqualified in March 2010, after the federal government ordered the state to stop offering prenatal services to some of the children through Medicaid. About 1,600 Nebraska women lost their coverage, roughly half of whom were illegal immigrants.

Debate on the vote began shortly after Heineman and the state Republican Party released statements urging lawmakers to kill the proposal. The Nebraska Republican Party sent an email to supporters Tuesday evening, urging residents to contact their state senator to vote against "taxpayer-funded health benefits to illegal immigrants."

In prepared remarks, Heineman said he strongly opposed the bill and vowed to fight it.

"We should only be using taxpayer funds for legal Nebraska citizens, not for illegal aliens," Heineman said. "I am going to fight against LB 599 because it's not right that government should force legal citizens to pay for benefits for illegal aliens."

The bill would extend coverage to an estimated 1,200 unborn children per year. It would cost roughly $650,000 per year in state money and $2.6 million in federal dollars.

Omaha Sen. Jeremy Nordquist called the measure "an absolute moral and long-term fiscal imperative."

"When prenatal care is denied, as a result of inaction by this Legislature, it is the unborn baby who bears the full cost of this tragic decision," Nordquist said. "It is a moral imperative to give every Nebraska baby a chance to be born healthy."

Support for the bill has united religious, health care and social welfare advocates, who say a child's life outweighs the dispute over immigration. Health care providers say low-income women in Nebraska are waiting longer for prenatal care since they lost coverage and are more often facing complications at birth.

Prenatal care providers throughout Nebraska said the increase stems from a 2009 federal order that has forced women to travel farther for check-ups, which in turn has prompted some to wait until late in their final trimester. The safety-net providers say the decision also has increased the number of women they see each year, straining their budgets and sometimes leading to high staff turnover.

The number of pregnant women visiting the East Central District Health Department in Columbus increased from an average patient load of 139 pregnant women in March 2010, to 349 women last year.

The department's director, Rebecca Raymond, has said the clinic's federal recognition prevents it from denying service based on an ability to pay. She said the cuts have also meant longer drives for women — 150 miles, in some cases — who often lack reliable transportation.

The amount the clinic received in Medicaid reimbursement fell to $333,000 last year, compared with nearly $524,000 in 2009. When the cuts came, the clinic started receiving 100-200 calls per week.

Lawmakers advance Nebraska prenatal care bill to restore coverage to illegal immigrants | The Republic

Related Thread

http://www.alipac.us/f12/lawmakers-a...migran-254349/

Prenatal coverage bill advances

By KEVIN O'HANLON / Lincoln Journal Star | Posted: Tuesday, April 3, 2012 11:15 pm | (17) Comments

A controversial bill that would provide prenatal care to mothers who lost Medicaid coverage in 2010 -- including undocumented mothers -- was given first-round approval late Tuesday by Nebraska lawmakers.

The 30-16 vote came several hours after Republican Gov. Dave Heineman sent an email to senators trumpeting his opposition to the measure (LB599).

"Like many Nebraskans, I am pro-life, but this issue is about illegal immigration. I am strongly opposed to the use of taxpayer funds for benefits for illegal aliens. I support legal immigration, not illegal immigration," Heineman said. "We should only be using taxpayer funds for legal Nebraska citizens, not for illegal aliens. I am going to fight against LB599 because it's not right that government should force legal citizens to pay for benefits for illegal aliens."

If Heineman were to veto the measure, which faces two more rounds of consideration, the 30 votes it garnered Tuesday would be just enough for an override.

Several lawmakers, including Lincoln Sen. Kathy Campbell, who sponsored the measure, said the lack of prenatal care for low-income pregnant women can lead to a host of health issues for newborn babies, including increased risk of birth defects, low birth weight and slowed mental development. That can cost the state more in the long run, they said, because those children will be U.S. citizens if they are born here.

"Would we not want that child to be healthy?" she said. "Would we not want healthy babies?

Said Sen. Annette Dubas of Fullerton: "Being pro-life doesn't mean we get to select" who gets prenatal care.

"A baby is a baby is a baby," she said.

Lincoln Sen. Tony Fulton spoke in opposition to the bill.

"It is not simply a pro-life issue. It is not simply an issue of illegal immigration. It is both," he said. "It is not either-or. It is both."

It would require the state Department of Health and Human Services to implement a program under the state Children's Health Insurance Program for unborn children.

Unborn children had never been included in Medicaid eligibility rules, but Nebraska HHS had, as a practice, included them. When federal workers learned that a couple of years ago, coverage stopped.

At the time, about 1,600 women lost coverage; half of them were in the country illegally.

Women who were citizens lost coverage because they had been sanctioned, for example, for not cooperating with child support requirements.

The bill would restore prenatal coverage July 1. It would cost about $2.6 million a year -- $654,000 in state general funds and $1.9 million in federal funds. That amount is based on coverage for the 1,162 women thought to be eligible, 1,100 of whom are undocumented.

Jordan McGrain, executive director of the Nebraska Republican Party, also sent out an email before the vote urging lawmakers to oppose the measure.

"Illegal immigration is a problem that costs Nebraska taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars every year," he said. "And the financial burden of this crisis creates a tremendous strain on our schools, our hospitals, our law enforcement agencies and our government resources."

Sen. John Nelson of Omaha agreed.

"We represent the taxpayers," he said. "You can talk about love for the children and it's the right thing to do and it should be in our hearts. But how we feel about it. ... is not necessarily how the majority of people who have to foot the bill feel about it."

Reach Kevin O'Hanlon at 402-473-2682 or kohanlon@journalstar.com





Read more: Prenatal coverage bill advances

Damn! wish I'd saw this, this mornin'

NEBRASKA LAWMAKER CONTACT INFORMATION:

STATE SENATE: Nebraska Legislature - Senator Listing

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Tweet these idiot's, still may be able to say "No!"

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Lincoln, NE · http://www.nebraska.gov

Prenatal care bill raises ire of governor

By Paul Hammel
WORLD-HERALD BUREAU


LINCOLN — The day after 30 state lawmakers advanced a controversial bill to restore taxpayer-funded prenatal care for illegal immigrants, Gov. Dave Heineman singled out for criticism a fellow Republican leader who helped push the bill.

Heineman, who has made a reputation for his staunch anti-illegal immigration views, called a press conference Wednesday to express his "extraordinary" disappointment in State Sen. Mike Flood of Norfolk, the speaker of the Legislature and a leading pro-life senator.

"Why should illegal aliens receive millions of taxpayer dollars when those funds should be used for increased state aid to education?" Heineman asked.

Flood, who has been mentioned as a possible candidate for governor in 2014, was among senators giving first-round approval to the bill, under which an estimated 1,100 low-income, women, mostly illegal immigrants, would be eligible for prenatal care funded by the state. The bill would resume a decades-long policy that was ended in 2010.

Flood said Wednesday his support for the prenatal bill was linked to both pro-life and fiscal reasons. He said he had not talked to the governor.

During floor debate Tuesday night, Flood said that in balancing the "rule of law" with the "pro-life position," he has to side with the health of an unborn baby.

"The unborn child should not be punished for the actions of his or her parents," he said. "We should protect the life of an unborn child whenever possible."

At least 13 other Republicans voted "yes" on the 30-16 vote to advance Legislative Bill 599. Heineman said he singled out Flood for criticism because he had become a "leader" in the effort to pass the prenatal bill.

Heineman said that passing LB 599 with make Nebraska a "magnet" for illegal immigrants because neighboring states don't provide such prenatal care.

The governor also criticized Flood for supporting a bill that would allow cities, with voter approval, to increase local sales taxes by a half-cent for infrastructure projects.

Heineman, in a letter to Flood, said that "unless you and the Legislature reverse course, the legacy of this session will be one in which illegals were given preferential treatment over legal Nebraska residents."

Taxpayers, he said, are already paying for medical treatment of illegal immigrants. Flood said the estimated $650,000 annual cost of LB 599 is much less than taxpayers are currently paying in higher prices for emergency births and long stays in neonatal intensive care units for children who develop complications because of the lack of prenatal care.

Flood was the main author of a Nebraska law passed two years ago that bans abortions after 20 weeks, when fetuses start to experience pain. That pro-life bill has spawned similar bills in other states.

Flood said he decided that if he's going to push pro-life legislation like that, "then I'm going to be pro-life when it's tough to be," a reference to the prenatal bill.

Flood said the data doesn't support the idea that pregnant mothers who are illegal immigrants will move to a state just because they offer prenatal care. He added that he feels that Nebraskans understand and support the idea that prenatal care will save taxpayer dollars.

The friction between the two leading Republicans came a day after state lawmakers overrode the governor's veto of paying child-welfare subcontractors $2.5 million in bills that were left unpaid by a private contractor the state had hired to run the system in central and western Nebraska.

The veto and the advancement of LB 599 have been seen as examples of the Legislature's increasing willingness to disagree with the governor this session.

Flood, however, voted against paying the $2.5 million in claims.

Contact the writer:
402-473-9584, paul.hammel@owh.com

Prenatal care bill raises ire of governor - Omaha.com

Nebraska governor vows to veto prenatal care bill


8:40 PM, Apr. 4, 2012

By Grant Schulte, Associated Press

LINCOLN, Neb. (WTW) — Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman promised Wednesday to veto a bill that would restore taxpayer-funded prenatal care coverage for illegal immigrants, and singled out a fellow Republican leader who backed the measure.

The governor told reporters he was "extraordinarily disappointed" in the Legislature's first-round vote to advance the measure in the waning days of this year's session.

Heineman aimed his criticism at Speaker of the Legislature Mike Flood, a Republican who supported the bill.

"Taxpayer funds should not be used for illegal individuals," Heineman said, reading from a letter his office hand-delivered to the speaker's office. "If this bill becomes law, Nebraska will become a magnet for illegal aliens. Nebraska will become the only state in the Midwest providing taxpayer-funded benefits to illegals. None of our neighboring states, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming and South Dakota, provide taxpayer-funded benefits to illegals."

Lawmakers advanced the bill through the first of three votes on Tuesday, 30-16. Lawmakers need at least 30 votes to sustain Heineman's veto. A second vote was expected as early as Wednesday night.

The bill by Lincoln Sen. Kathy Campbell would direct the Department of Health and Human Services to establish Children's Health Insurance Program coverage for unborn children of mothers who are ineligible for Medicaid. Coverage is allowed under the CHIP program because it can only be applied to children, who would become U.S. citizens if born in America.

Roughly 870 illegal immigrants and 750 legal residents lost coverage in 2010, when the federal government ordered the state to stop offering the benefits through Medicaid. The Nebraska bill would allow women to instead enroll in the federal Children's Health Insurance Program, which allows fetuses to qualify federal- and state-funded care.

The bill would extend coverage to an estimated 1,162 fetuses each year, at a cost of $650,000 in state money and $1.9 million in federal tax dollars.

Supporters argued that the measure was a moral imperative, while opponents said it would force taxpayers to cover illegal immigrant care.

Flood, who has sponsored legislation banning late-term abortions, said the immigration concern was important, but trumped by the health concerns for unborn children who lack access to prenatal vitamins, ultrasounds, doctors and nurses. He said medical data doesn't support the notion that pregnant illegal immigrants would move to a state for prenatal care.

Flood said his vote on the prenatal care bill reflects his consistent opposition to abortion. The Republican senator said he has supported efforts to restrict other benefits to illegal immigrants, and opted to "err on the side of life," when he voted for the proposal.

"It's about the issue for me," he said. "I work in an environment every day where I agree and disagree with my colleagues. I try to keep an open mind, and think about the arguments that are being made, and respond on behalf of those I represent."

Heineman also criticized Flood and lawmakers for their votes on a bill that would let cities increase their sales tax rates by as much as one-half of a cent, if voters approve. The current limit is 1.5 cents for each dollar spent. The measure has won support from numerous Nebraska cities.

The sales tax bill would require voter support and a super-majority of the local city council to pass. Flood said he supported letting voters decide in their communities.

One Old Vet

Nebraska governor vows to veto prenatal care bill | The Oshkosh Northwestern | thenorthwestern.com

Prenatal care proposal for illegal immigrants divides Nebraska lawmakers, frustrates governor
http://www.ksdk.com/images/640/360/2...20x%20240).jpg
GRANT SCHULTE Associated Press

3:01 a.m. CDT, April 5, 2012
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The issues of illegal immigration and abortion have split Nebraska's Republican-dominated politics, with some conservatives supporting a plan to offer state aid to pregnant women in the country illegally and others arguing that doing so would violate a bedrock GOP belief.

The measure has made opponents of typical allies, with Republican Gov. Dave Heineman pushing hard against the proposal, even while noting his strong opposition to abortion. The Republican speaker of the Legislature, Mike Flood, has taken the opposite position, supporting the measure while stating that he has always been against illegal immigration.


The measure would require the state to pay for prenatal care to low-income women who have entered the U.S. illegally. It would extend coverage to an estimated 1,162 fetuses each year at a cost of $650,000 in state money and $1.9 million in federal tax dollars.

The measure advanced through first of three required votes Tuesday night, 30-16. Fourteen of the "yes" votes came from Republicans, who joined with a contingent of typically out-numbered Democrats.

In an unusually terse news conference Wednesday, Heineman said he was "extraordinarily disappointed" with the Legislature's veto-proof vote to support the measure.

Lawmakers later Wednesday night advanced the bill through the second of three votes, 29-16, one vote short of being veto-proof.

Heineman singled out Flood, saying he and other lawmakers were wrong to support taxpayer-funded benefits to illegal immigrants, regardless of the reason.

"Unless you and the Legislature reverse course, the legacy of this session will be one in which illegals were given preferential treatment over legal Nebraska citizens," Heineman said, reading from a letter that his staff hand-delivered to the speaker's office. "This will be a session remembered for a tax increase on legal, working Nebraskan men and women while illegal aliens were provided taxpayer-funded benefits."

Heineman said the issue revolves around immigration, not abortion, and that the bill would turn Nebraska into "a magnet for illegal aliens."

He said churches and private charities, not the state, should support pregnant women who have entered the country illegally.

"I am one of the most pro-life governors in America," he said. "This is about illegal immigration, and Nebraskans know that."

Flood, who has sponsored legislation banning late-term abortions, said the immigration concern is important but trumped by the health concerns for unborn children who lack access to prenatal vitamins, ultrasounds, doctors and nurses. He said medical data do not support the notion that pregnant illegal immigrants would move to a state for prenatal care.

"For me, when you weigh the two issues, you have a baby's life and health in the balance," Flood said. "That's weighted more. Take illegal immigration and in-state tuition. That one, I think, is weighted differently, because there is no life at stake."

Abortion opponents said the vote marked an important victory to assuage their fears about the health of unborn children, and the prospect that women without access to care could seek abortions.

"This child's health and future and well-being are potentially at stake," said Greg Schleppenbach, a spokesman for the Nebraska Catholic Conference. "It should be weighted much more toward care for this human being, rather than strict adherence to immigration law."

Supporters argue that by helping women have a healthy pregnancy, the state would reduce infant deaths and ultimately save money by avoiding emergency births, long hospital stays and treatment for children who develop complications.

Opponents say the bill would reward unlawful behavior with taxpayer-funded benefits and could attract more illegal immigrants to Nebraska.

Roughly 870 illegal immigrants and 750 legal residents lost coverage in 2010, when the federal government ordered the state to stop offering the benefits through Medicaid. The bill would enroll women under the federal Children's Health Insurance Program, which allows fetuses to qualify federal- and state-funded care.

Opponents said the money is needed elsewhere.

"Nobody wants to see a baby suffer. Nobody wants to see a baby come into this world who has issues — none of us do," said Ogallala Sen. Ken Schilz. "But on the other side of that, there is an absolute cost to all of this, and that cost has to be borne by someone."

A group of lawmakers tried in 2010 to create a federally sanctioned program that would have qualified fetuses for coverage, but the effort failed under the weight of anti-illegal immigration sentiment and election-year anxiety.

Some health care institutions, including a practice at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, have helped fill the void by providing free or discounted prenatal services to women who lost coverage. It's unclear how many benefited.

Health care providers that serve pregnant women say the loss of coverage has endangered women and their pregnancies.

Rebecca Rayman, executive director of the Good Neighbor Community Health Center in Columbus, said the loss of Medicaid coverage has drawn more women to her clinic, which is federally recognized and cannot deny service based on an inability to pay.

She said the cuts have also meant longer drives for women — 150 miles, in some cases — who often lack reliable transportation. The center's average patient load of 139 pregnant women in March 2010 surged last year to 366.

The amount the clinic received in Medicaid reimbursement fell to $333,000 last year, compared with nearly $524,000 in 2009, which forced cuts to dental services and other less-pressing needs. Rayman said four fetuses died after the subsidized care ended.

"The whole immigration argument is puzzling to me," she said. "When I think of the United States, we don't punish the innocent. And a newborn child is innocent. It's not an immigration issue. It's a health care issue."

Abortion is an especially important issue in Nebraska, which has become a national leader in efforts to limit the procedure. In 2010, the state became the first to ban abortions after 20 weeks of gestation based on the disputed notion that a fetus can feel pain at that point.

"That baby, at 20 weeks and one day, is a baby — not a fetus," said Republican Sen. Sen. Bob Krist, of Omaha. "At 20 weeks, that is a future citizen of the United States, and a fellow Nebraskan. If you deny services for the baby or the life support system — the mother — you are harming a future Nebraskan."

Prenatal care proposal for illegal immigrants divides Nebraska lawmakers, frustrates governor - chicagotribune.com

Above article added to the Homepage
http://www.alipac.us/content/lawmake...-immigran-344/

Illegal Immigration and Abortion Combine to Split Nebraska Republicans

Published April 05, 2012

Fox News Latino
http://a57.foxnews.com/img.foxnews.c...1/mama-art.jpg
mama-art.jpg
(Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Lincoln, Neb. – The issues of illegal immigration and abortion are combining in Nebraska politics, where a plan to offer state aid to pregnant, undocumented women has spilt the state's Republican majority.

The measure has made opponents of typical allies, with Republican Gov. Dave Heineman pushing hard against the proposal, even while noting his strong opposition to abortion. The Republican speaker of the Legislature, Mike Flood, has taken the opposite position, supporting the measure while stating that he has always been against illegal immigration.

The measure would require the state to pay for prenatal care to low-income women who have entered the U.S. illegally. It would extend coverage to an estimated 1,162 fetuses each year at a cost of $650,000 in state money and $1.9 million in federal tax dollars.

The measure advanced through first of three required votes Tuesday night, 30-16. Fourteen of the "yes" votes came from Republicans, who joined with a contingent of typically out-numbered Democrats.

In an unusually terse news conference Wednesday, Heineman said he was "extraordinarily disappointed" with the Legislature's veto-proof vote to support the measure.


Lawmakers later Wednesday night advanced the bill through the second of three votes, 29-16, one vote short of being veto-proof.

Heineman singled out Flood, saying he and other lawmakers were wrong to support taxpayer-funded benefits to illegal immigrants, regardless of the reason.

"Unless you and the Legislature reverse course, the legacy of this session will be one in which illegals were given preferential treatment over legal Nebraska citizens," Heineman said, reading from a letter that his staff hand-delivered to the speaker's office. "This will be a session remembered for a tax increase on legal, working Nebraskan men and women while illegal aliens were provided taxpayer-funded benefits."

Heineman said the issue revolves around immigration, not abortion, and that the bill would turn Nebraska into "a magnet for illegal aliens."

He said churches and private charities, not the state, should support pregnant women who have entered the country illegally.

"I am one of the most pro-life governors in America," he said. "This is about illegal immigration, and Nebraskans know that."

Flood, who has sponsored legislation banning late-term abortions, said the immigration concern is important but trumped by the health concerns for unborn children who lack access to prenatal vitamins, ultrasounds, doctors and nurses. He said medical data do not support the notion that pregnant illegal immigrants would move to a state for prenatal care.

How Do Latinos Identify? (Hint: Not as Latinos)

"For me, when you weigh the two issues, you have a baby's life and health in the balance," Flood said. "That's weighted more. Take illegal immigration and in-state tuition. That one, I think, is weighted differently, because there is no life at stake."

Abortion opponents said the vote marked an important victory to assuage their fears about the health of unborn children, and the prospect that women without access to care could seek abortions.

"This child's health and future and well-being are potentially at stake," said Greg Schleppenbach, a spokesman for the Nebraska Catholic Conference. "It should be weighted much more toward care for this human being, rather than strict adherence to immigration law."

Supporters argue that by helping women have a healthy pregnancy, the state would reduce infant deaths and ultimately save money by avoiding emergency births, long hospital stays and treatment for children who develop complications.

Opponents say the bill would reward unlawful behavior with taxpayer-funded benefits and could attract more illegal immigrants to Nebraska.

Roughly 870 undocumented immigrants and 750 documented residents lost coverage in 2010, when the federal government ordered the state to stop offering the benefits through Medicaid. The bill would enroll women under the federal Children's Health Insurance Program, which allows fetuses to qualify federal- and state-funded care.

Opponents said the money is needed elsewhere.

"Nobody wants to see a baby suffer. Nobody wants to see a baby come into this world who has issues — none of us do," said Ogallala Sen. Ken Schilz. "But on the other side of that, there is an absolute cost to all of this, and that cost has to be borne by someone."

A group of lawmakers tried in 2010 to create a federally sanctioned program that would have qualified fetuses for coverage, but the effort failed under the weight of anti-illegal immigration sentiment and election-year anxiety.

Some health care institutions, including a practice at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, have helped fill the void by providing free or discounted prenatal services to women who lost coverage. It's unclear how many benefited.

Health care providers that serve pregnant women say the loss of coverage has endangered women and their pregnancies.

Rebecca Rayman, executive director of the Good Neighbor Community Health Center in Columbus, said the loss of Medicaid coverage has drawn more women to her clinic, which is federally recognized and cannot deny service based on an inability to pay.

Celebrities Who Were Once Undocumented

She said the cuts have also meant longer drives for women — 150 miles, in some cases — who often lack reliable transportation. The center's average patient load of 139 pregnant women in March 2010 surged last year to 366.

The amount the clinic received in Medicaid reimbursement fell to $333,000 last year, compared with nearly $524,000 in 2009, which forced cuts to dental services and other less-pressing needs. Rayman said four fetuses died after the subsidized care ended.

"The whole immigration argument is puzzling to me," she said. "When I think of the United States, we don't punish the innocent. And a newborn child is innocent. It's not an immigration issue. It's a health care issue."

Abortion is an especially important issue in Nebraska, which has become a national leader in efforts to limit the procedure. In 2010, the state became the first to ban abortions after 20 weeks of gestation based on the disputed notion that a fetus can feel pain at that point.

"That baby, at 20 weeks and one day, is a baby — not a fetus," said Republican Sen. Sen. Bob Krist, of Omaha. "At 20 weeks, that is a future citizen of the United States, and a fellow Nebraskan. If you deny services for the baby or the life support system — the mother — you are harming a future Nebraskan."

Based on reporting by the Associated Press.

Read more: Illegal Immigration and Abortion Combine to Split Nebraska Republicans | Fox News Latino

The real agenda here is more for the Nebraska Corn Grower's Association to maintain a huge cheap pool of illegal alien labor than it is over concern for prenatal care for anchor babies. The latter is the drawing card, the former is reason we have massive illegal immigration in all fifty state.

American tax payers foot the burden, employers of illegal aliens pocket the money.

Obviously written by Gov. Dave Heineman.
~~~~

Legislature votes for taxpayer funded benefits for illegal aliens


Dear Fellow Nebraskans:

I want to share a critical issue with you that will have serious and costly ramifications for our state.

The Nebraska Legislature has voted twice to provide taxpayer-funded benefits to illegal aliens. If this bill, LB 599, passes final reading, I will veto the bill.

If this bill were to become law, Nebraska will become a magnet for illegal aliens. Nebraska would become the only state in the Midwest providing taxpayer-funded benefits to illegals.

None of our neighboring states of Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming and South Dakota are providing taxpayer-funded benefits to illegals.

Providing benefits regardless of immigration status will attract illegals from all across America to Nebraska.

If an illegal immigrant is residing in one of the 36 states that do not offer benefits to illegals, this will incent and encourage illegal immigrants to come to Nebraska, forcing you, the hard-working, legal citizens of our state, to pay for public benefits for them.

That is not fair and it is not right.

In 2009, the Legislature and I worked together to ensure that taxpayer-funded benefits are only provided to legal residents of Nebraska.

Three years ago this month, I signed LB 403 into law.

This law prohibits illegal immigrants from receiving state and local benefits by requiring state and local governments to verify that any person applying for benefits is in the United States legally.

One example of attempted abuse by illegal immigrants is with unemployment benefits administered by the Nebraska Department of Labor.

During the last five years, we have stopped more than $1.9 million in taxpayer-funds from going to illegal aliens who tried to file claims for unemployment benefits in our state.

More than half of those claims were filed in the last 2 years, which saved $577,000 in 2010 and last year the savings increased to $632,000.

We should be using your tax dollars for those who truly qualify and need it the most.

If passed, LB 599 will cost Nebraskans millions of dollars. LB 403 ensures state and local benefits go to those who truly qualify, while LB 599 undermines the integrity of that law at its most basic level.

However, I want to be clear about the specific issue of prenatal care. I support prenatal care for legal citizens.

Individuals, charities and businesses that feel strongly about providing prenatal care to illegal immigrants are certainly welcome to do so with their own money.

That is their choice, but taxpayer funds should not be used for benefits for illegal aliens.

Nebraska is an economically successful state because we focus on our key priorities - education and jobs.

We should be using tax dollars to fund education and to expand job opportunities for our citizens.

Please take a moment this week to contact your state senator and share with them your opinion on this issue that is critical to the future of our state.

Legislature votes for taxpayer funded benefits for illegal aliens - York News-Times: Editorial

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