The White House declined to comment Wednesday on whether it would grant a waiver to allow California to be the first state in the country to allow illegal immigrants to buy healthcare on the Obamacare exchange.
Thirty-seven California Democrats on Capitol Hill asked the administration in a letter for an exception to the law to allow for an estimated 50,000 of the state’s undocumented workers to purchase healthcare plans.
Presidential press secretary Josh Earnest Wednesday told reporters he hadn’t seen the letter. But he did note that the way the Affordable Care Act is written, “individuals who are undocumented immigrants are not eligible to collect benefits.” A waiver is possible from the federal government, but Earnest declined to say what decision officials might make.
Earnest also blamed “fearmongering or outright lying on the part of Republicans” for the false belief that illegal immigrants are accessing Obamacare.
This story was corrected from the original version, which said the White House indicated it would not grant the waiver for California.
