The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 - Reducing the Number of Recipients and Applicants Eligible to Receive Medicaid Benefits

Medically impaired individuals such as George, as well as disaster victims, mentally handicapped persons, homeless persons, and foster children, will be adversely affected by the new citizenship documentation requirements imposed upon the states by the Act. States will also be adversely affected by the increased administrative costs of implementing the Act\u27s requirements. This note asserts that aspects of the citizenship verification requirements treat citizen applicants worse than immigrant applicants, which violates the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment. Amendments should be made to the United States Code and the Code of Federal Regulations to ease the burden on individuals and states, while maintaining safeguards against giving benefits to fraudulent applicants and recipients