To the editor,

Rep. Van Orden has been criticized for increasing healthcare costs by supporting the BBB. What the critics have failed to point out is that costs have risen because of Obama Care and by illegal immigrants and immigrants waiting for their legal status that have strained the healthcare system. BBB, imperfect as it is, was designed to cut costs.

Thousands of refugees and some other immigrants with legal status lost their health coverage Oct. 1.
The law does not impact green card holders or a few other small groups of immigrants. The law also doesn’t change existing state options to cover children and pregnant immigrants; states can still receive federal matching funding for these populations. 
The law is projected to cut Medicaid spending by $900 billion through 2034, largely by imposing new eligibility restrictions, work requirements and cost sharing. 
In selling the bill to Congress, the administration argued that “illegal aliens” would be losing Medicaid.  
The law ensures U.S. government money is spent on Americans and forces immigrants to be self-sufficient. Immigrants must be able to support themselves and not depend on benefits paid for by hard-working American taxpayers. Those immigrants waiting for their green cards will be able to requalify for healthcare services.
Rep. Van Orden is being falsely accused of increasing healthcare costs when in fact he's supported a bill to reduce costs. A better plan would be to get the government out of healthcare and let the free markets for insurance flourish. Vote for Rep. Van Orden this November; he put Americans first.

Sanjeev Dhawan

Ellsworth