,Best Practices: How States Can Reduce the Burden of the Citizenship Documentation Requirement

Best Practices: How States Can Reduce the Burden of the Citizenship Documentation Requirement


 

Publication Date: May 2007

Publisher: Families USA

Author(s): Rachel Klein; Ella Hushagen

Research Area: Health

Type: Brief

Abstract:

In February 2006, President Bush signed the Deficit Reduction Act (DRA) into law. One of the most notable provisions of this law is that it requires people who apply for or receive Medicaid and declare that they are U.S. citizens to provide documentation of their citizenship status and identity. This law did not change any of the rules about who qualifies for Medicaid, nor did it change any of the rules pertaining to immigrants who apply for or receive coverage through Medicaid or the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). However, it did change the rules about what paperwork people have to submit to their state agencies when they apply for Medicaid if they are U.S. citizens. Previously, federal law allowed states to decide what documentation people needed to submit to prove that they were U.S. citizens. Most states required applicants to attest to their citizenship under penalty of perjury and required additional documentation only in certain circumstances. Now, federal law and regulations strictly prescribe the kinds of documentation that are acceptable. States were required to start collecting documentation of citizenship and identity beginning on July 1, 2006.