European Style Healthcare Will be Least of Our Concerns

Americans aren't the only ones closely watching the outcome of the Obama-Pelosi healthcare battle. Millions of illegal immigrants here, and potentially millions more poised just south and north of our borders, are waiting to see what deal they may get out of our magnanimous new national leadership.

The heedless march to socialize U.S. healthcare may have been stymied for now, but the issue may now see the kind of scrutiny it deserves given what it fundamentally represents: a massive expansion of national power at the expense of the personal health decisions and privacy of Americans who will be footing the bill. And this debate ought to include an honest discussion of why healthcare is joined at the hip with illegal immigration, which is the next item on President Obama’s “transformational” agenda.

At the nexus of illegal immigration and healthcare are federal standards for state identifications. Despite the potential for abuse of any “national” health plan, Democrats have discarded any serious verification requirements for eligibility. And this combination could accomplish something that would be unthinkable even in most socialist states: an expansion of government payouts to people who are in the country illegally.

This is no time to invite more illegals across our borders. Recently, there was new data from the Pew Hispanic Center that showed the number of illegals from Mexico falling. America’s economic slowdown is reverberating across the border, and fewer Mexicans are coming here. This trend was barely discussed in the realm of the healthcare debate, but it is of central importance. Unimpeded access to healthcare will beckon illegals to return.

Federally coordinated standards are most centrally a matter of national security and were a central recommendation of by the 9/11 Commission. The Commission concluded that the 9/11 terrorists’ ability to easily obtain multiple authentic drivers’ licenses was critical to their plans. In fact, the 9/11 terrorists held at least 35 authentic US drivers’ licenses, issued by five states, which they used to remain in the country illegally.

America is still in dire need of a bold, unapologetic response to the verification loopholes that helped make 9/11 happen, and Real ID was passed in 2005 with precisely this goal. Real ID is a solution to the threat, and it will prevent terrorists from avoiding detection and operate their cells here by manipulating antiquated state identification systems. But when implemented, Real ID would be far too effective for the politicians’ good. A mishmash of leftists and free market libertarians have distorted it by cooking up an Orwellian thicket of hassles, compliance headaches, and privacy infringements. The self-interested nature of the criticism has been clear, to say the least, and the concerns vastly overstated.

Verification is critical to preventing abuse of a government-run health plan. And yet today, activists are busy gutting Real ID in favor of a useless alternative, PassID, that will accomplish next to nothing for America’s security prerogatives and allow millions of illegals to have virtually unimpeded access to American healthcare. In fact, it would significantly reduce the security of states’ identifications by effectively allowing illegal aliens to get US drivers’ licenses. Yet, Pass ID was introduced in June by a bi-partisan group of Senators and may soon become law.

It gets worse. Given the thicket of regulations, cost-cutting, and centralized rationing that are the hallmark of Obamacare, it’s reasonable to assume that Congress would make some attempt to prevent illegals from obtaining free health care. But this is wishful thinking. Obamacare does nothing to address the verification problem.

This goes well beyond benign neglect. On July 16th, Congressman Dean Heller (R-NV) offered an amendment to the House healthcare bill that would have added a requirement that existing citizenship verification tools be used to determine eligibility for taxpayer-funded healthcare benefits. Sensible, right? The proposed amendment was defeated.

With this one-two punch, Obamacare— which remains more than a strong possibility—would become a giant welcome mat along the US banks of the Rio Grande River.

America has enjoyed a long period free of terrorist attacks by Islamic extremists. But our guard is down, and Democrats are pouncing. They’re not only rolling back Real ID, but they’re stripping any verification tools from their plans for national health care. Fortunately, we’ve been given some breathing room in the healthcare debate. But it’s about time we look at the issue alongside illegal immigration. If Real ID and the 9/11 Commission’s recommendations continue to be ignored, European style healthcare will be the least of our concerns.

Ed Kowalski, of Pawling, is a Director of 9/11 Families for a Secure America. His niece, Elizabeth Butler, was murdered in June 2005 by illegal alien Ariel Menendez. Menendez was felonyand misdemeanor-convicted prior to his murdering of Elizabeth.