By Rolynda Jonathan
A US Congresswoman has introduced a proposal to restore Medicaid coverage and services to the citizens of the freely associate states residing in the U.S.
On February 28, 2013, Hawaii representative Colleen Hanabusa introduced the “Restoring Medicaid for Compact of Free Association Migrants Act of 2013” amending the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996.
The proposal, which was introduced during the U.S. House of Representatives’ first session, would allow citizens of Palau, the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia access to the U.S. federal program.
Freely associated states citizens were allowed access to Medicaid as part of the Compact of Free Association Agreement until the 1996 Act cut them off and forced states such as Hawaii to cover cost of healthcare benefits.
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