To cap off the week devoted to nationwide consumer protection, Telemundo 52 Responde talks about a very important service, that provided by the Department of Immigrant Affairs, in Los Angeles County.
One in three Los Angeles County residents is an immigrant, which is why it’s so important for them to know that, with or without papers, they are a crucial part of this society and have rights and benefits. at their disposal.
The Office of Immigration Affairs is a source of resources available to all immigrants living in Los Angeles County.
“Here you can call us at the Immigration Affairs Office. We give them information and funnel them into programs,” said Rigoberto Reyes, executive director of the Los Angeles County Office of Immigrant Affairs.
And, one of the most needed services available to the Latino community is immigration legal services.
Indeed, there they can guide you to benefit from free help if you are eligible, and they can also accompany you to lodge a complaint or file a complaint if you have been the victim of an unscrupulous person.
“You have to report the fraud of notaries public, immigration consultants, who charge us a fortune to convince us,” Reyes added.
But beyond that, immigrants can call 1-800-593-8222 or visit oia.lacounty.gov for help with things like employment disputes, support benefits, and most importantly, help enrolling in programs that provide health benefits to all immigrants.
“Vision, dental, general health problems. So that we receive preventive medical care,” he added.
There are two programs that are eligible even if they are undocumented: one is My Health LA for any immigrant between the ages of 26 and 49.
Thousands of undocumented students can apply for financial aid, and they don’t need a social security number to do so. Reporting by Grecia Carrillo.
“It’s very similar to Medi-Cal, all you have to do is sign up, and there’s a network of clinics all over LA,” Reyes said.
And if you’re under 26 or over 50, you can now get all the benefits of Medi-Cal, but you must register, so contact the Office of Immigration Affairs and take advantage.
“Let them call us to explain what it is and what they need to qualify,” Reyes said.
By the way, if you have trouble contacting an agency because you don’t speak English, you can also call the Office of Immigrant Affairs, and they can make sure you’re registered so you can access benefits for which ones to qualify. .