Medford, OR – Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield announced that Oregon is joining a coalition of 13 states in a legal effort to defend health insurance access for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients. The move comes in response to a legal challenge that threatens to undermine the eligibility of DACA recipients to enroll in health care plans through the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
The Biden administration introduced a rule on November 1, 2024, allowing DACA recipients—commonly referred to as “Dreamers”—to enroll in ACA health plans for the first time. However, the rule has been met with opposition, particularly from a coalition of states led by Kansas, which filed a lawsuit in August 2024 to block its implementation. While the rule has been blocked in some states, it remains in effect in Oregon and most other jurisdictions.
In a statement, Rayfield emphasized Oregon’s longstanding commitment to expanding healthcare access and protecting the wellbeing of its residents. “Oregon has long been a national leader in our work to expand access to health care,” Rayfield said. “Today’s motion is an important step to protect our advancements and safeguard the health and wellbeing of all Oregonians.”
The legal action comes one month after former Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum launched a Sanctuary Promise Community Toolkit, which aims to help residents understand the state’s sanctuary laws and available resources. Oregon became the first sanctuary state in the nation in 1987, restricting state and local governments from assisting federal immigration enforcement without a judge’s order. The Sanctuary Promise Act of 2021 further strengthened these protections.
DACA, established in 2012, allows certain young immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children to remain in the country and avoid deportation, provided they meet specific criteria, such as continuous residence since 2007. DACA recipients, often considered vital members of their communities, contribute significantly to the U.S. economy. According to officials, DACA recipients pay an estimated $6.2 billion in federal taxes and $3.3 billion in state and local taxes annually, in addition to supporting more than 250,000 U.S.-citizen children.
The states involved in the legal action argue that DACA recipients would face harm if the rule were struck down. By including DACA recipients in healthcare exchanges, states like Oregon could see benefits, such as larger risk pools that could help lower premiums for all participants.
In addition to Oregon, the coalition of states includes Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, and Vermont. The states are working together to defend the ACA rule, which they say is critical to ensuring that all residents, including DACA recipients, have access to essential health coverage.