OpEd: 'Public Charge' Rule Could Be Devastating to HIV-Positive Immigrants

By ASC Advocacy Director Amanda Lugg for TheBody.com

Just when you thought it couldn't get much worse for immigrants, it could get much worse for immigrants.

In late 2017, the Trump administration announced its intention to impose harsher rules for determining when immigrants are considered a "public charge" -- a legal determination that can block an individual's path to permanent residency (i.e., obtaining a green card).

Under U.S. immigration law, a person seeking a green card through a family relationship must show that they "are not likely to become a public charge," which under current law is someone who is unable to support themselves and thus likely to depend on government benefits for income. Historically, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has only excluded applicants based on continuous receipt of cash benefits or long-term institutionalization at government expense, so as not to "inhibit access to non-cash benefits that serve important public interests."

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