Thanks to PIF partners who reached out to Senate offices urging opposition to the resolution reversing the Biden public charge regulation. Your efforts made a difference, and only two Democrats – Senator Joe Manchin and Senator Jon Tester – voted for the resolution, which passed by a narrow 50-47 margin. Press statements from PIF, NILC, and CLASP provide additional detail. 

We encourage you to issue press statements of your own, using the statements above as a starting point. We also ask that you retweet the PIF tweet holding Sen. Manchin and Sen. Tester accountable.

Though the House of Representatives could take it up at any time, a vote before June is unlikely. Still, it is important to minimize the number of Democrats who support reversal of the regulation, so now is the time to reach out to your representatives in the House. We encourage you to use our talking points as a starting point and customize your message to underscore the stakes for families in your community.

Please reach out to Lena O’Rourke on the PIF team with questions about our legislative strategy. Thank you again for all of your partnership in this important fight. 

Everyone deserves the tools they need to be healthy and well — regardless of their immigration status. Yet many immigrants face barriers to health care they need and are eligible to receive.

Community Catalyst and the Protecting Immigrant Families Coalition (PIF) invite you to join us and our partners on May 25th at 3pm ET for a conversation about breaking down barriers that make it difficult for immigrant communities to enroll in health coverage. This call will bring together immigrant rights and health equity advocates working to enroll eligible Latin/a/e/x communities, who are well poised to break down barriers and offer much-needed partnership to immigrant communities.

The Lifting Immigrant Families Through Benefits Access Restoration (LIFT the BAR Act) will soon be reintroduced. This landmark legislation, led by Representative Jayapal and Senator Hirono, restores access to programs like Medicaid, CHIP, and SNAP by removing the five-year bar and other barriers that deny critical care and aid to people who are lawfully present. Congratulations to everyone who helped get us to this point!  

PIF is circulating a sign-on letter bringing national, state, and local organizations together in support of the bill. The letter will be sent to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries to encourage swift action to pass the LIFT the BAR Act. We encourage you to sign on to our letter, even if your organization has formally endorsed the bill with Representative Jayapal.

PIF, in partnership with The Concilio, Texas A&M University, and Univision - Dallas/Fort Worth, put together this Spanish language notice to inform immigrant communities about how they can maintain health coverage as the Medicaid enrollment process changes. Watch the video here. 

In Solidarity,

Adriana Cadena & Cheasty Anderson, on behalf of the PIF Team