BREAKING: SCOTUS Allows for Anti-Immigrant Wealth Test to Proceed in Illinois
For Immediate Release
February 22, 2020
Contact:
Dani Hunter, dhunter@legalcouncil.org
UPDATE: Supreme Court Allows for Anti-Immigrant Wealth Test to Proceed in Illinois
Trump Administration’s public charge rule to take effect in Illinois, despite ongoing lawsuit
Legal Council is disappointed that by a 5-4 vote, the U.S. Supreme Court yesterday allowed the new public charge rule to go into effect in Illinois, rescinding the preliminary injunction we won in October.
This decision, while disheartening, is not a ruling on the merits of our claims that the rule is illegal. In fact, we bring our fight against the rule to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals next week. Oral arguments will proceed on Wednesday, February 26 at the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago.
We take courage in Justice Sotomayor’s strong dissent from this ruling that this is a temporary setback, not a foregone conclusion. We will fight for justice to prevail as this case proceeds.
In the fall of 2019, lawyers from Legal Council, working with Sidley Austin, Goldberg Kohn, and Shriver Center sued the Trump Administration on behalf of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights and Cook County to halt the public charge rule. The public charge rule penalizes immigrants who have or may receive Medicaid in legal status decisions. We believe the federal government’s policy is illegal. In October 2019, Legal Council and our co-counsels obtained a preliminary injunction from a federal judge that enjoined application of the public charge rule in Illinois. After the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals twice refused to lift the injunction, the federal government appealed to the Supreme Court last week.
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Legal Council for Health Justice uses the power of the law to secure dignity, opportunity, and well-being for people facing barriers due to illness and disability. All programs partner with health and hospital systems to train and support the care provider network, provide direct representation to referred patients, and conduct systemic advocacy to promote health equity among populations facing chronic, disabling, and stigmatizing health and social conditions. www.legalcouncil.org