As you may be aware, I have very strong concerns about President Obama’s health reform plan, including that it represents an alarming government takeover of health care and will impose burdensome taxes and a costly new entitlement that our nation simply cannot afford. In addition, there has been a lot of concern and discussion as to whether or not illegal immigrants will be able to receive taxpayer benefits under the bill. While President Obama has denied that charge, I share these legitimate concerns and let me explain why.

While the bill currently before the House, H.R. 3200, states that illegal immigrants cannot receive benefits, it contains no verification mechanism to ensure that is the case. This fact has been verified by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service in their report entitled Treatment of Noncitzens in H.R. 3200. The report clearly states that H.R. 3200 “does not contain any restrictions on noncitizens… participating in the [taxpayer subsidized Health Insurance] Exchange.” Additionally, the bill gives the Health Choices Commission the ability to determine which individuals are eligible for federal subsidies to help purchase health insurance, but again does not specify any enforcement mechanism, such as ID checks, to ensure illegal immigrants are not eligible for the benefits.

As such, and in an effort to further highlight this issue, I have joined 53 of my colleagues in urging Speaker Pelosi to include language that would prevent illegal immigrants from receiving taxpayer-funded benefits. This letter is consistent with my longstanding support for efforts to prevent federal tax dollars from going to individuals who are here illegally. As we work to bring skyrocketing health care costs down, I believe it is essential that we do everything possible to eliminate the excessive burden that illegal immigrants place on our health care system.