A solution to the policy challenge of financing health care costs of low income migrant workers is the establishment of a Migrant Worker Health Care Fund that will subsidize the health care costs of migrant workers. Here is how it can work:
The State creates the fund with the sale of social bonds backed by the tax revenue from sectors using migrant workers – such as hospitality industry, agriculture, construction, essential services etc. The key is that the fund is backed by this tax revenue and not by the actual tax revenue – in other words it leverages our tax revenue to achieve our policy objective.
The fund subsidizes the health care costs of member health care institutions who offer health care services to migrant workers. These health care institutions will be eligible for a tax credit towards some of their expenses.
The fund will have oversight through a citizen commission to monitor the operations and implementation of the fund.
Example of a 10 Year $100 million Fund
This proposal establishes the Migrant Workers Health Care Fund (MWHCF), a sustainable and morally grounded financing system to provide essential healthcare access to migrant workers. It is capitalized through a $100 million, 10-year Tax Credit-Backed Social Bond (TCBSB) structure. Bondholders receive modest state tax credits (1-3 % annually) instead of interest, while the principal is repaid through a diversified, performance-linked Principal Repayment Fund (PRF).
Key Bond Terms
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Total Bond Issuance | $100 million |
| Term | 10 years |
| Investor Return | 1 % annual state tax credit (non-compounding) |
| Principal Repayment | Repaid at maturity via a fund built over 10 years |
| Interest Paid | None—tax credits are the incentive |
Core Repayment Fund Sources for $100 million fund ($10 million a year)
1. Sector-Targeted Sales Tax Allocation – $3–4M/year
- Earmark a small % (e.g. 0.05–0.1%) of sales tax revenue from industries with high migrant labor:
- Agriculture
- Hospitality
- Construction
- Food production
- These sectors benefit directly from the labor pool—this becomes a moral reinvestment.
2. Employer Participation Contributions – $2–3M/year
- Offer state tax credits (50–75%) to employers who voluntarily contribute.
- Encourage participation through:
- Certification (e.g., “Migrant Health Responsible Employer” badge)
- ESG reporting benefits
- Community goodwill and reduced worker turnover
3. Healthcare Provider Incentive Credits – $1–2M/year value
- Offer modest tax credits to:
- Health care providers who contribute to the fund, example doctors, or health care institutions
4. Foundation & Faith-Based Investments – $1–2M/year
- Target Program-Related Investments (PRI) or recoverable grants from:
- Foundations
- ESG-aligned philanthropy (Ford, Packard, Kresge, etc.)
- Justified as moral investments in health justice, with repayment tied to bond maturity
5. Individual Donor Credits – $500K–$1M/year
- Let individuals contribute through charitable-style tax credits or recurring giving
🧮 Summary Table: Yearly Contribution Targets
| Source | Annual Target | % of Total |
| Sector-Specific Sales Tax | $3.5M | 35% |
| Employer Contributions (Tax Credit) | $2.5M | 25% |
| Healthcare Provider Incentives | $1.5M | 15% |
| Philanthropy / PRI | $1.5M | 15% |
| Individual Donors | $1M | 10% |
| Total | $10M/year | 100% |
🔁 Feedback Loops and Enforcement
- Contributions should be audited annually, with any shortfall triggering:
- Temporary increase in sector sales tax allocation
- Supplemental grants from reserve funds
- Scaling down of tax credits (to keep commitments balanced)
- Bond terms can include reserve buffers to absorb one to two years of shortfall risk.
This idea is inspired by the lives of migrant workers, policy leaders who put human life first, by other creative people in finance such as Todd Hurley, and by Sensei my AI model.
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