The federal government is currently performing a cost of living and poverty study in the U.S. Virgin Islands to more accurately determine eligibility for Medicaid, food stamps and other programs, according to Delegate to Congress Donna Christensen.
The delegate said in a statement Wednesday that, when the Affordable Care Act was being developed, she “led the charge” to include a study reassessing the calculation of the federal poverty level for different geographic areas, “especially when you take into account the varied differences in the cost-of-living in the United States.”
The provision directs the secretary of Health and Human Services to not only include the territories but to pay special attention to the disparity in poverty levels and the cost-of-living in the territories and the potential impact of expanding health coverage to territorial residents, according to Christensen.
“While we have a poverty rate that is higher than the national average, we also have a cost of living that is the highest in the nation,” she said. “This report will become even more important when you consider that the 2010 Census reports a dramatic reduction in our poverty rate that is inconsistent with our present reality,” she added.
Christensen praised Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius for making sure the study happened.
Christensen said she suspects and hopes the report will show the current federal poverty level “is out of date."
Those suspicions have been informally confirmed through the Congressional Research Service, she added.
“The poverty levels for the Virgin Islands and the offshore territories need to be reset so that it truly reflects conditions in the islands," Christensen said.
