Skyrocketing healthcare budget for illegal immigrants haunts blue state taxpayers
Guadalupe Manriquez, the California Department of Finance program budget manager, told the state Assembly Budget Committee Monday the state is "spending $9.5 billion total funds" to "cover undocumented individuals in Medi-Cal" in the current year.
Manriquez explained that this is a "revised number based on the governor's budget-updated estimates," adding the earlier figure was from the earlier "budget act."
"Of the $9.5 billion, $8.4 billion is general fund," she said.
Republican Assemblyman Carl DeMaio noted that the cost of healthcare for illegal immigrants could be enough to help solve some of the state's budget woes and "avoid going into the rainy day fund," The Center Square reported. He said the number originally floated was roughly $6 billion.
A new state law enacted at the start of 2024 ensures that "immigration status doesn't matter" for those looking to apply for taxpayer-backed insurance, according to the state's health department website.
California Assembly Minority Leader James Gallagher told Fox News Digital in a statement that gutting the insurance availability for illegal immigrants would make a significant dent in the state's deficit.
"California's budget is $30 billion in the red, but instead of tightening its belt, Sacramento is doubling down on reckless spending," the Republican said.
"The state is shelling out $9.5 billion on healthcare for illegal immigrants while emergency rooms overflow, hospitals teeter on the brink and working Californians struggle to see a doctor," he continued. "Rather than making responsible choices, leaders are raiding the rainy-day fund to keep the spending spree going. This isn't just a budget crisis — it's a complete failure of leadership."
Democratic Assemblywoman Pilar Schiavo said during the hearing that healthcare costs are a major target of the new administration, which leads to uncertainty for the state.
"We know that today unelected Elon Musk and DOGE have taken their sights to Medicare and Medicaid, which is Medi-Cal here in California. And that is, you know, well over half of our budget," the lawmaker said.
The spending discussion comes at a time when the federal government is conducting a major crackdown on illegal immigration, including raids done by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and much stricter policies at the border itself.
Steve Hilton, founder of Golden Together and a Fox News contributor, said it's "yet another example of California Democrats' totally wrong priorities."
"Here's yet another example of California Democrats' totally wrong priorities. They have nearly doubled the state budget in the last ten years, yet over a third of Californians cannot meet their basic needs," Hilton said.
"We have the highest poverty rate in America. We pay the highest taxes and get the worst results. People are asking, "Where did all our money go?" And here's the answer: ideological obsessions like this — free healthcare for people who are here illegally. People have had enough of all this. There's going to be change in California sooner than people think."
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