Daijiworld Media Network - Washington

Washington, Oct 5: US President Donald Trump has issued an order using his Presidential authority which is likely to affect immigrants entering the country.

The order which will come into effect on November 3, suspends the entry of immigrants who will not be covered by health insurance within 30 days of entering the United States or who do not have the means to pay for their healthcare costs themselves.

Even if the visa is not necessarily denied, the order is likely to affect over 23,000 Indians, Doug Rand, an Obama White House immigration official told media.

US President Donald Trump

Trump in his order explained the reason for implementing the new rule. “While our healthcare system grapples with the challenges caused by uncompensated care, the United States Government is making the problem worse by admitting thousands of aliens who have not demonstrated any ability to pay for their healthcare costs," Trump said in the proclamation.

The order further read, “Immigrants who enter this country should not further saddle our health care system, and subsequently American taxpayers, with higher costs.”

The White House said in an accompanying fact-sheet that the President’s order was intended to “ensure we protect the availability of healthcare benefits for American citizens”. Immigrants, it added, are three time more likely to lack health insurance than citizens and uncompensated healthcare costs have been in excess of $35 billion in each of the past 10 years.

“Large numbers of non-citizens have taken advantage of our country’s generous public health programmes,” the White House said.

The new rule applies to people seeking to enter the United States with an immigrant visa, especially those sponsored by immediate relatives. The H-1B visa holders with employer-sponsored plans and the Medicare programme for the elderly will not be affected.