Immigrants, Benefits Are Focus of Forum

Hoping to inform immigrants about the public services available to them, the Immigration and Naturalization Service joined with other groups Wednesday for an educational forum to clarify new guidelines for food stamps, health services and other benefits.

“There are many, many people that are not accessing essential services that, in fact, they are entitled to,” County Supervisor Gloria Molina told the crowd at Bravo Medical Magnet High School. “We want them to use outpatient services instead of what has been happening, ending up at emergency rooms very sickly.”

The three-hour forum, which drew an audience of more than 100 people, was dominated by questions about how the INS categorizes benefits and whether the use of benefits will hurt an immigrants chances at attaining residency.

Specifically, many asked for clarification about an INS designation known as “public charge,” concerned that it referred to the use of any service provided by the government.

But Thomas Schiltgen, INS district director, explained that the designation applies only to cash assistance and not other benefits, such as public housing and Medicaid.

In recent years, concern over being penalized for the use of public services has led to a severe drop in immigrants’ use of benefits, Schiltgen said. According to a study by the Urban Institute in Washington, over the past three years, approved applications for health and welfare benefits by legal immigrants have plummeted 71%.

Among those attending the forum were representatives from various immigrant and community organizations hoping to respond to the large number of inquiries they receive on the topic of public benefits.

“We are trying to educate our immigrant community to use public benefits and improve [their] capacities as individuals,” said Marissa Perez of the Coalition For Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles.