This document contains questions and answers regarding immigrants and the five-year bar. Section 403 of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) provides that certain immigrants who enter the United States on or after August 22, 1996 are not eligible to receive federally-funded benefits, including Medicaid and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), for five years from the date they enter the country with a status as a “qualified alien.”