This is an idea from Michael Trebilcock.
One reason governments resist more liberal immigration policies is the concern that some immigrants will ultimately make claims on local, state and federal government (for example, for food stamps).
One way to allay this concerns is to require immigrants (or at least a certain class of immigrants who would now be denied entry) the ability to enter on condition that they purchased immigration insurance. This private insurance would reimburse the government if the immigrants ended up making financial demands on the government.
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This is a great idea. Many economists say that immigrants add more to the economy than they take in services, and this would be an ideal way to test that idea with the market.
Given the level of sophistication seen in all areas of international finance and commerce and given the gloal contributions and value-add by immigrants, it seems almost silly that this approach or one like it, has not been tried by any US administration.
I see your point, but if these immigrants could afford such insurance which would most likely contain very high premiums, they wouldn't need government assistance in the first place. It's like offering a 5K a year premium on house insurance, which would gurantee shelter to a homeless person.