Graduation Year

2024

Document Type

Campus Only Senior Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

Public Policy Analysis

Reader 1

Shanna Rose

Reader 2

Vanessa Tyson

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Abstract

This year has been one of notable success for immigrant and health justice interest groups in California and Washington State with the inception of Medicaid-like healthcare coverage expansions for income-eligible residents irrespective of their immigration statuses. In both states, the campaigns stressing these expansions were advocated for by interest groups that formed coalitions led by members of the impacted communities who shared personal testimonies with legislators to promote passing a bill through the state government. There tends to be a division between the voices of community members and those of the state legislature that creates dissonance between the activism taken on by individuals with limited political power and the legislative work conducted within the government behind closed doors. The role of interest groups is to rectify this division by creating a bridge between these two groups through elevating the voices of marginalized community members by connecting them to champion legislators and providing space for them to run campaigns based on the needs that they assess as most pivotal. Through focus groups, education and outreach, interest groups were able to address community demands and strive for social justice through legislative action. However, while a bill was passed in California to open access to MediCal to undocumented immigrants as well as refugees with temporary status, the campaign organizers and policy teams in the state of Washington had to shift to advocating for a budget proviso likely due to several factors that must continue to be assessed in future campaigns. These factors- which were highlighted in interviews with campaign organizers and policy directors within the two coalitions studied in this report- include the timing of the legislative session, the composition of the legislature, and the predisposition of the state to the progressive measures within the bill for which the interest groups are advocating.

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