Expansion of health insurance in California unlikely to act as magnet for undocumented immigration.

Abstract

Expansion of health care coverage has risen to the top of the legislative agenda in California. One question within the health care reform debate is whether expanding health insurance to all Californians will attract new undocumented immigrants who would come primarily for those benefits. A review of studies on immigration and public benefits suggests that the net attraction of any major expansion of health insurance in California would be minor in comparison to the existing attractions of jobs, family and other factors. This policy brief reviews research studies on undocumented immigration and public benefits, with specific attention to health insurance benefits. Because so few studies examine the migration of undocumented immigrants for health benefits, we also review two directly related areas of inquiry: (1) the relationship between public benefits offered by a state and the destination choice of legal immigrants to the United States; and (2) the migration of low-income citizens across state lines in response to public benefits offered by states.