It's About Time!

UPDATE: Just as an FYI, I found this nice little factoid via Conservative News Service (from data provided by the Congressional Research Service) -- "From its modest $1 billion budget in 1966, the Medicaid program’s cost has rocketed. It now costs taxpayers approximately $300 billion a year."
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Let's see.... Medicaid has been around for over 40 years, and they are finally getting around to ensuring that illegal immigrants cannot legally receive benefits. It may not be much, but it's a start. After all, it's estimated that here in Texas we spend around $100 million a year on Medicaid for illegal immigrants.

First, there was this article via AP: Medicaid Recipients Will Need Citizenship

"The requirement that beneficiaries provide proof of citizenship goes into effect July 1. It's designed to root out cases of illegal immigrants getting their health care paid for by the government."

By the way, did you catch that at the end? You know, where it said "paid for by the government" as if the government has its own little bank account that doesn't consist of taxes forcibly extracted from workers' wages? So don't worry -- it's not your money paying for these services -- it's the government's money!

The next day, the Houston Chronicle rounded up the usual "groups" who had this to say about it: Groups say change in Medicaid will do little

"The Bush administration's plan to make Medicaid applicants show proof of U.S. citizenship will have little impact on illegal immigrants because few of them apply for the low-income health benefit, Houston immigrant advocates said Monday."

Inside the article was this unintentionally amusing quip:

"However, advocates say that illegal immigrants have always been wary of applying for a government benefit that requires citizenship, especially when lying on the application is a federal offense that could lead to criminal prosecution and deportation. "

Yeah, because illegal immigrants are so concerned about upholding the integrity of our laws. And, plus, they are extra concerned because we are so ruthlessly efficient in our "criminal prosecution and deportation" of illegal immigrants.

The Bush Administration has fumbled this immigration issue since day one, but here's at least one thing they got right!