Thread: TX: Study: Illegal immigrants' care costs state $677 million

Study: Illegal immigrants' care costs state $677 million
By JANET ELLIOTT Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle Austin Bureau
Dec. 11, 2008, 8:33PMShare
Print Email Del.icio.usDiggTechnoratiYahoo! BuzzAUSTIN — The State of Texas and local hospital districts spent an estimated $677 million to provide health care to illegal immigrants in a year, a new study says.

The survey, issued by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, said that most of the money — $597 million — was spent by local hospital districts for the immigrants care during the state's fiscal year that ended on Aug. 31, 2007.

Lawmakers from both parties said they were not surprised by the millions spent and expressed hope that the report, required by the 2007 Legislature, will help prompt Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform legislation.

State Rep. Garnet Coleman, D-Houston, said the study only tells half of the story. He noted that the immigrants contribute to government coffers by paying sales and property taxes.

The report said the state spent $80 million under the Texas Emergency Medicaid program, which pays hospitals to provide life-saving care, including labor and delivery services, to patients living here illegally. The state also paid $1.2 million to provide services to undocumented immigrants in family violence shelters.

About 1.6 million illegal immigrants were living in the state in 2007,the report said, citing a federal Homeland Security Department estimate. Federal law requires hospitals and ambulance services to provide care to anyone needing emergency treatment regardless of their citizenship, legal status or ability to pay.

The Harris County Hospital District provided $203.5 million in uncompensated care to illegal immigrants in 2007, the report said.

But county hospital district officials disputed the report's numbers, noting that they were calculated on the basis of charges instead of costs. They said charges are inflated, typically double the actual costs of services to taxpayers.

"The cost of health care to undocumented immigrants is something we worry about, something we monitor, but we don't want to overstate it," said David Lopez, president and CEO of the Harris County Hospital District. "It's not an overwhelming percentage of our budget."

Lopez said the actual cost is 10 to 14 percent of the hospital district's budget, or about $100 million to $120 million.

About 80 percent of the district's illegal immigrant patients were women and children, and most were pregnant women whose children were born as U.S. citizens.

Lopes said the hospital district was not consulted for the report.

In another sense, the report underestimated the cost of care to illegals because it did not include figures for the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, which functioned like a hospital district by providing safety-net services. It spent $140 million annually on undocumented immigrant care, an official said Thursday.

Gov. Rick Perry is reviewing the report, but had no comment Thursday, a spokeswoman said. Likewise, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, who is considering challenging Perry in 2010, declined comment until she studied the information.

State Rep. Warren Chisum, R-Pampa, the House Appropriations Committee chairman, said the report puts a number on health care costs that the state cannot do anything about.

"Show it to our congressman, I guess. Tell him, 'Merry Christmas,' " Chisum said.

"This is something we can look at the federal government and say, 'You guys ought to do a better job of guarding your borders or at least pay for 'em if you're going to allow them to come over here."

One of the most prominent critics of illegal immigration, Rep. Leo Berman, R-Tyler, said he is glad that Congress is getting the report.

"I'd like to bill the United States government," he said, "and have them pay Texas for the cost of the benefits that they require us to provide to illegal aliens."

But a report issued two years ago by then-Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn said undocumented immigrants helped to support the state's economy. She said illegal immigrants in 2005 paid $1.58 billion in taxes while the state spent a total of $1.5 billion.

SRep. Coleman said he agreed with critics of illegal immigration that the report should be sent to Congress.trayhorn said local governments spent $1.3 billion on indigent health care.



"Anything that can move the federal government to have a comprehensive immigration policy that works for this country is extremely important," he said.

"If it's just used for purposes of creating divisions and perceptions that persons are getting something for nothing, that's the wrong way to use it."
Reporters Todd Ackerman, Peggy Fikac and Lisa Sandberg contributed.

janet.elliott@chron.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/6160505.html

Instead of bailing out everyone at the taxpayers expence, why not start with the hospitals?
These CEOS, from all these places are asking government for a bail out, you know I never got to vote if we should bail all these people out.
The CEOS are going to get a percent of the money, I dont believe a ### word they say.
I would like them all these corporations ( these people are only money hungry) especially the CEOS who are running this company, to show their bank accounts.

The government "bailout" is a crok of you know what.

Since Obamamyourmama, is the new president, ( more like jackass)
he wants to spread the wealth, maybe he can help the ones who are losing their homes.

It takes real balls to come and ask the government for help, when these CEOS are linning there OWN POCKETS, and bank accounts.
Why is it the AMERICAN taxpayers have to "Bail out" all these big time people.

I think they should count anchor baby care too. We wouldn't be paying that, if the illegal alein parents weren't here having children. That's a direct cost associated to illegal immigrants.

But county hospital district officials disputed the report's numbers, noting that they were calculated on the basis of charges instead of costs. They said charges are inflated, typically double the actual costs of services to taxpayers.

Fair market value and what the hospital would loose if the bill isn't paid and what Americans would be expected to pay. American's don't get a break and illegals get medical care at cost. Nonsense comments like these drive me up a wall.

Illegal aliens are not the reason property taxes are being paid. Property taxes will be paid and collected, if there were no illegal aleins in Texas. The state, county, and schools do not loose one cent of collectable tax because every property is taxed and paid for by the owner.

Sales tax is only collected on non-food items.

Texas doesn't benefit from illegal aliens but they sure benefit from Texas.

Dixie

Lawmakers from both parties said they were not surprised by the millions spent and expressed hope that the report, required by the 2007 Legislature, will help prompt Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform legislation.

Now that is the stupidist comment I have read....Make them citizens and then we can't blame them as illegals...cause they are now citizens??????????

Delete federal taxes for a year. Let's see if the states can function.

Was working on putting this on the Homepage and noticed they updated the article to the following.
There are over 600 comments at the source link.
~~~

Study: Illegal immigrants' care costs state $677 million
By JANET ELLIOTT Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle Austin Bureau
Dec. 12, 2008, 11:23AM
Austin — The state of Texas and local hospital districts spent an estimated $677 million to provide health care to illegal immigrants in a year, a new study says.

The survey, issued by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, said that most of the money — $597 million — was spent by local hospital districts for the immigrants' care during the state's fiscal year that ended on Aug. 31, 2006.

Lawmakers from both parties said they were not surprised by the millions spent and expressed hope that the report, required by the 2007 Legislature, will help prompt Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform legislation.

State Rep. Garnet Coleman, D-Houston, said the study only tells half of the story.

He noted that the immigrants contribute to government coffers by paying sales and property taxes.

The report said that in the fiscal year ending Aug. 31, 2007, the state spent $80 million under the Texas Emergency Medicaid program, which pays hospitals to provide life-saving care, including labor and delivery services, to patients living here illegally. The state also paid $1.2 million to provide services to undocumented immigrants in family violence shelters.

Federal law requires hospitals and ambulance services to provide care to anyone needing emergency treatment regardless of their citizenship, legal status or ability to pay.

Harris County's cost
The Harris County Hospital District provided $203.5 million in uncompensated care to illegal immigrants in 2006, the report said.

But county hospital district officials disputed the report's numbers, noting that they were calculated on the basis of charges instead of costs. They said charges are inflated, typically double the actual costs of services to taxpayers.

"The cost of health care to undocumented immigrants is something we worry about, something we monitor, but we don't want to overstate it," said David Lopez, president and CEO of the Harris County Hospital District. "It's not an overwhelming percentage of our budget."

Lopez said the actual cost is 10 to 14 percent of the hospital district's budget, or about $100 million to $120 million.

About 80 percent of the district's illegal immigrant patients were women and children, and most were pregnant women. Lopez said the hospital district was not consulted for the report.

In another sense, the report underestimated the cost of care to illegal immigrants because it did not include figures for the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, which functioned like a hospital district by providing safety-net services. It spent $140 million annually on undocumented immigrant care, an official said Thursday.

Gov. Rick Perry is reviewing the report, but had no comment Thursday, a spokeswoman said. Likewise, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, who is considering challenging Perry in 2010, declined comment until she studied the information.

Hoping to send a message
State Rep. Warren Chisum, R-Pampa, the House Appropriations Committee chairman, said the report puts a number on health care costs that the state cannot do anything about.

"Show it to our congressman, I guess. Tell him, 'Merry Christmas,' " Chisum said. "This is something we can look at the federal government and say, 'You guys ought to do a better job of guarding your borders or at least pay for 'em if you're going to allow them to come over here.' "

One of the most prominent critics of illegal immigration, Rep. Leo Berman, R-Tyler, said he is glad that Congress is getting the report.

"I'd like to bill the United States government," he said, "and have them pay Texas for the cost of the benefits that they require us to provide to illegal aliens."

But a report issued two years ago by then-Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn said undocumented immigrants helped to support the state's economy. She said illegal immigrants in 2005 paid $1.58 billion in taxes while the state spent a total of $1.5 billion. Strayhorn said local governments spent $1.3 billion on indigent health care.

Rep. Coleman said he agreed with critics of illegal immigration that the report should be sent to Congress.

"Anything that can move the federal government to have a comprehensive immigration policy that works for this country is extremely important," he said.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/6160505.html

As usual, Mark Krikorian has useful insights on this:
------

The High Cost of Cheap Labor

By Mark Krikorian, December 12, 2008

No surprise here:

The state of Texas and local hospital districts spent an estimated $677 million to provide health care to illegal immigrants in a year, a new study says.

The survey, issued by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, said that most of the money — $597 million — was spent by local hospital districts for the immigrants' care during the state's fiscal year that ended on Aug. 31, 2007.

Lawmakers from both parties said they were not surprised by the millions spent and expressed hope that the report, required by the 2007 Legislature, will help prompt Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform legislation.

But why would the report help do that? The syllogism seems to be that "Immigrant welfare use is bad" and "illegal immigration is bad" therefore "immigrant welfare use is caused by illegal immigration." In other words, if only Congress would give the illegals amnesty (a/k/a "comprehensive immigration reform") and import future foreign labor through legal channels, then Texas wouldn't have to pay two-thirds of a billion dollars a year for health care for the formerly illegal aliens.

The problem with this reasoning is that illegallity is not the reason for immigration's cost to taxpayers. A Mexican peasant with a sixth-grade education isn't going to do a whole lot better in the labor market just because we give him a green card. And what our modern society considers minimum-acceptable standards of living aren't going to change, so we're still going to subsidize such people. The bottom line is that importing 19th century labor into a 21st century society is always a losing proposition.

http://www.cis.org/node/939

Added to Homepage:
http://www.alipac.us/article-3818--0-0.html

Originally Posted by Populist

As usual, Mark Krikorian has useful insights on this:
------

The High Cost of Cheap Labor

By Mark Krikorian, December 12, 2008

No surprise here:

The state of Texas and local hospital districts spent an estimated $677 million to provide health care to illegal immigrants in a year, a new study says.

The survey, issued by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, said that most of the money — $597 million — was spent by local hospital districts for the immigrants' care during the state's fiscal year that ended on Aug. 31, 2007.

Lawmakers from both parties said they were not surprised by the millions spent and expressed hope that the report, required by the 2007 Legislature, will help prompt Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform legislation.

But why would the report help do that? The syllogism seems to be that "Immigrant welfare use is bad" and "illegal immigration is bad" therefore "immigrant welfare use is caused by illegal immigration." In other words, if only Congress would give the illegals amnesty (a/k/a "comprehensive immigration reform") and import future foreign labor through legal channels, then Texas wouldn't have to pay two-thirds of a billion dollars a year for health care for the formerly illegal aliens.

The problem with this reasoning is that illegallity is not the reason for immigration's cost to taxpayers. A Mexican peasant with a sixth-grade education isn't going to do a whole lot better in the labor market just because we give him a green card. And what our modern society considers minimum-acceptable standards of living aren't going to change, so we're still going to subsidize such people. The bottom line is that importing 19th century labor into a 21st century society is always a losing proposition.

http://www.cis.org/node/939

BINGO!

Any of my fellow Texan brothers and sisters care to place a wager? I have $1 that this study will be ignored and it will be business as usual.