California: taxpayers paid for liver transplants for illegal immigrants; now they need new ones

Ana Puente was an infant with a liver disorder when her aunt brought her illegally to the U.S. to seek medical care. She received TWO liver transplants at UCLA Medical Center as a child in 1989 and a third in 1998, each paid for by state taxpayers.  [The LA times says paid for "by the state."  Clever misdirection!]

But when Puente turned 21 last June, taxpayer-funded health insurance no longer covered her, so she was unable to continue treatment at UCLA.

This year, her third donated liver began failing again.  She applied for taxpayer-funded treatment via Medi-Cal, which is that state's name for Medicaid, the federal program in which taxpayers pay for health care for poor Americans.  In a rare move, the application was denied.

Last month Puente learned of another, little-known option for illegal aliens [the LA Times, wishing to hide the multi-billion-dollar cost of medical care and other benefits for illegals, simply says "for patients "]:  If she told U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services that she was in the country illegally, state health officials might grant her full Medi-Cal coverage.

Puente did so, her benefits were restored and she is now awaiting a fourth transplant at UCLA.

Although Democrats are loathe to raise the topic, it's reasonable to ask whether American taxpayers should be forced by Democrat politicians to pay for liver transplants for illegal immigrants?

The average cost of a liver transplant and first-year follow-up is nearly $490,000, and anti-rejection medications can run more than $30,000 annually, according to the United Network for Organ Sharing, which oversees transplantation nationwide.  Also, there's a big shortage of donated livers :  In California 3,700 people are on a waiting list for livers, according to the network.

Given the huge cost and shortage of donated organs, some say illegal immigrants should return to their home countries for care rather than receive organs and costly transplants ahead of legal residents and U.S. citizens.  Many Americans don't think the public ought to be funding any kind of benefits for people who broke U.S. law to enter the country.
Illegal immigrant children with certain severe, chronic illnesses are eligible for funding under a state program called California Children's Services. But the coverage ends when they turn 21. After that, they can receive free or low-cost treatment through county services for the medically indigent and, in some cases, emergency Medi-Cal. But in Los Angeles County, doctors said neither program covers liver transplants.

State health officials said California law is designed so there is no gap in coverage, so children move seamlessly from state-funded treatment to county care. But that doesn't always happen. When they become adults, illegal alien patients often have to switch doctors and hospitals, and may lose access to necessary care. 

Wow, they "often have to switch doctors"?  That's just...awful!  It's an outrage! 

Wait, isn't that exactly the same thing Obamacare forced on American citizens?  Remember when da emperor lied and said "If you like your doctor you can keep your doctor," which he knew was a lie when he uttered it?  Some of us still do.

Puente has learned the demand game well:  "It doesn't matter if I'm undocumented," she said. "They should take care of me at UCLA for the rest of my life because I've been there since I was a baby."