Revocation Of The "Public Charge" Rule

Readers of our blog know that Haider, Alex and I have a longstanding interest in the intersection of health care law and immigration law. That's important for our blog, especially because of the needs of the immigrant community to be able to access critical healthcare services through the Medicaid program. Over the past couple of years, we've written extensively about a regulation published by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in 2019 that's known as the "public charge" rule. Last week, after a series of announcements by the Biden Administration, the rule has, in effect, been revoked.

As a refresher, US immigration law has long barred admission to the United States by foreign nationals who are "likely at any time to become a public charge."¹ This public charge prohibition applies both to individuals seeking a visa at a U.S. Consulate overseas to visit the United States, and to foreign nationals in the United States seeking to "adjust status" - in