OLR Report 2014-R-0247 answers several questions: What is the legislative history of the law that eliminated the State Medical Assistance for Non-Citizens Program (SMANC)? Prior to the program’s elimination, how much did it cost the state to pay for services to eligible individuals through SMANC? How many lawfully present immigrants are currently affected by the program’s elimination?
In 1997, the state, through SMANC, began offering state-funded health insurance coverage to qualified immigrants who were ineligible for Medicaid because they had lived in the country for less than five years (see sidebar). In 2009, the legislature eliminated most of the program. Court challenges temporarily halted the termination on constitutional grounds, but the state Supreme Court upheld the state’s right to terminate these benefits.
A 2009 federal law allowed states to provide exceptions to this Medicaid ban for pregnant women and children up to age 21. Connecticut provides such exceptions to the ban.
According to the Office of Fiscal Analysis, the state spent approximately $24 million per year on SMANC before the program was eliminated.
According to the Department of Social Services (DSS), when the program was eliminated in 2011, 4,889 individuals lost health insurance coverage. However, we were unable to obtain data on the number of lawful immigrants currently residing in Connecticut who would qualify for SMANC had it not been eliminated.
Certain individuals who would have been eligible for SMANC may be eligible for other medical coverage under certain circumstances. Federal Medicaid is available to lawful immigrants as well as undocumented non-citizens if they require emergency medical assistance. Additionally, certain lawfully present immigrants can qualify for health insurance coverage with tax credit and cost sharing reductions through Access Health CT, the state’s health insurance exchange, even if they have lived in the United States for less than five years.
For more information, read the full report.
