No, executive order doesn't provide free health insurance to Hispanics in 2024 | Fact check

Isabel C. Morales, USA TODAY
Updated ·2 min read
1

The claim: Biden signed an executive order to give free health insurance to Hispanics in 2024

[En Espa?ol: No, decreto no proporciona seguro médico gratuito para hispanos en 2024]

A Feb. 23 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) shows President Joe Biden signing a document at a desk with the presidential seal.

“SPECIAL REGISTRATION. The Federal Government passed Executive Order 14009 supporting $0 per month health insurance for Hispanics in 2024 enrollment!” reads the post in Spanish.

Other versions of the post circulated as far back as October 2023.

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Our rating: False

The executive order in question does not offer free health insurance to Hispanics or anyone else. Biden signed Executive Order 14009 in 2021 to increase accessibility to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act for all Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Executive Order 14009 was signed in 2021

Executive Order 14009, Strengthening Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act, was signed by Biden on Jan. 28, 2021, during the pandemic. The order says nothing about offering Hispanics free medical insurance as the claim asserts.

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Instead, the order was aimed at strengthening access to Medicaid – a public health insurance program for low-income adults, children, the elderly and people with disabilities – and to the Affordable Care Act, a federal statute designed to make health insurance affordable for more people.

The order requires heads of agencies to examine policies or practices that "may present unnecessary barriers to individuals and families" attempting to access either Medicaid or Affordable Care Act coverage.

The photo in the post also has nothing to do with Executive Order 14009 or even health insurance. Biden's purple tie and the wrinkles on it match photos and videos from a signing ceremony on Jan. 21, 2021, a week before Executive Order 14009 was signed, as he signed unrelated executive actions related to COVID-19.

USA TODAY previously debunked a claim in January 2023 that the executive order provided free health insurance to all Americans.

USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: False claim executive order gives free health insurance | Fact check

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