No matter poor or rich, ethnic Chinese people in the US usually hope to buy a house. Some ethnic Chinese people in the US have no income, so they apply for health and medical assistance, that is, Medicaid, also known as the “White Card”. But, these ethnic Chinese people who are “without income” later buy a house, which then contradicts with the status of “without income”. Relevant departments of the state governments in the US are always staring at the White-Card holders’ bank accounts. Whenever money comes in, they immediately notify the White-Card holders to ask them to pay back the money.

There was someone living in New York City who bought an apartment early in his life, but because his income was low, he applied for the White Card and got it. Later, his economic situation improved, and house prices soared. So, he wanted to sell the apartment to buy a big house. However, the New York City government then sent him a letter saying that he had money in his bank account and asked him to pay back the money paid by the White Card. There was another person who had no money in the bank account and applied and got a White Card. Later, he wanted to buy a house and his lawyer let him deposit money into the bank account. Consequently, the money was discovered by the government and the White Card was cancelled.

People often confuse the low-income medical assistance insurance program Medicaid (commonly known as the “White Card”) with the federal medical insurance Medicare. In principle, Medicaid is a medical service insurance provided by the cooperation between the federal and state governments for low-income households. It is a subsidy given by society rather than due benefits. Medicare on the other hand is the due benefits that taxpayers have earned from working.