California has become the first state to offer universal health insurance to all illegal immigrants, regardless of whether they have any documentation.
On Jan. 1, taxpayers will now be forced to pay thousands of dollars for medical care for an additional 700,000 undocumented immigrants — ages 26 to 49 — who qualify for full coverage under Medi-Cal, California's Medicaid program.
It comes at a time when more than 1.5 million people cross the southern border every year. Many of them are seeking shelter in California's Democratic-run “sanctuary cities.”
Previously, undocumented immigrants were not eligible for health insurance under Medi-Cal unless there was an emergency or pregnancy-related issue.
Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom and lawmakers agreed in 2022 to provide health care access to all low-income adults, regardless of immigration status, through the state's Medicaid program, known as Medi-Cal.
The expansion will ultimately cost the state about $3.1 billion per year Associated press reported.
The move has been criticized by the California Senate Republican Caucus, which stated that the state's Medicaid program “already.” strained by serving 14.6 million Californians – more than a third of the state's population. Adding an additional 764,000 individuals to the system will certainly exacerbate current provider access issues.”
But, Newsom's office said ABC newsin part, that “we in California believe that everyone deserves access to quality, affordable health care coverage – regardless of income or immigration status.”
Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed hundreds of new laws that took effect Jan. 1, including one that provides health care to all undocumented immigrants in the state of California
California is home to more than two million undocumented immigrants
More than 500,000 people illegally crossed the border into California in 2023, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data and preliminary escape data obtained exclusively by The Center Square.
The Public Policy Institute of California defines “undocumented immigrants, also known as illegal or unauthorized immigrants, a population not directly identified in representative national or state surveys.”
Newsom said, “Through this expansion, we will ensure that families and communities across California are healthier, stronger and can get the care they need when they need it.”
Earlier this year, Senator Maria Elena Durazo said opening Medi-Cal to all undocumented Californians has been a goal for health care and immigration advocates for years and applauded the news.
She said, “This historic investment is a testament to California's commitment to health care as a human right.”
Before Newsom became governor, Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill in 2015 that allowed only undocumented children to enroll in Medi-Cal. as long as they met eligibility requirements, including income limits and California residency in 2014.
In 2019, Newsom signed a law expanding eligibility to people under age 26, and in May California began insuring people age 50 and older.
The office of the state senator explains that Californians qualify for Medi-Cal coverage based on their income. The income ceiling for a family of four this year is $36,156.
Medi-Cal is also available to people with certain medical conditions, and to people who are pregnant, blind, disabled, under age 21, living in a nursing home, or a recently settled refugee.
Sarah Dar, director of Health and Public Benefits Policy at the California Immigrant Policy Center, said the “budget investments reflect California's values of inclusivity and fairness and should be a model for the rest of the nation.”
“All Californians, regardless of age or where they were born, should have access to basic needs like food and fair, stable wages,” Dar said.
Undocumented residents remain the largest group of uninsured people in California, according to a recent analysis from the Center for Labor Research and Education at the University of California, Berkeley.
California still has the largest population of undocumented immigrants in America, according to a Pew Research Center study. Axios San Francisco reported.
According to the latest data from 2021, the number of undocumented immigrants was 10.5 million, and of that number, 1.85 million, about five percent of the total population, were in California.
More than 500,000 people illegally crossed the border into California in 2023, according to US Customs and Border Protection data and preliminary escape data obtained exclusively by The Center Square.
This number is up from nearly 302,000 in fiscal year 2022, the news source said.