One of the most heated political debates in recent years has been whether illegal immigrants should be allowed to be part of healthcare reform. This burning issue perhaps has the most significant impact on the state of California where almost one-fourth of all illegal immigrants in the United States reside.

By conservative estimates, there are at least 12 million illegal immigrants in the U.S., out of which roughly 3 million live in California. Some of these 12 million illegal immigrants receive health coverage of some sort through their employers or through the state, and the others receive treatment at emergency rooms and public clinics, the costs of which are naturally borne by the taxpayers.

This cost burden hits California the most because of its large share of illegal immigrants. Considering the cash-strapped and deficit-ridden economy of the state, the question has gone beyond the ideological debate, and it has become a hard question of economic survival. The impact of including or excluding illegal immigrants from healthcare reform could amount to billions of dollars in the state’s budget.

The plain truth is that California is simply in no position for such an excess financial burden. The debate about illegal immigrants being included or excluded from health insurance coverage has again raised an age-old controversy. This is an ideological debate with the law on one side and a humane approach on the other side. Emotions cannot be allowed to take precedence over the law. This is the whole basis of law and order in a society.

The status of illegal immigrants is an issue that must be resolved at a political and diplomatic level, and not at an economic level. Legitimizing illegal status by way of providing state benefits to someone who has essentially no legal claim or legal rights over such benefits seems to be illogical. At a time when the economy is in a state of crisis, and there is not enough public money to provide health coverage for legal citizens, it does not make sense to include illegal immigrants for health coverage at California taxpayers’ expense.