GOP blames the health care of immigrants as media costs increase

The health care program in California which covers nearly 15 million people costs more money than Governor Gavin Newsom planned, creating a New budgetary problem In a skinny year.

Now, its administration borrows $ 3.4 billion from the general state fund to cover the unexpected increase in costs. It is not known when the administration plans to restore money.

The administration acknowledged that more people are registered on the program that the State was providing and that the State spends $ 2.7 billion more than it provided for coverage extensions for immigrants without legal status.

Approximately 1.6 million immigrants without legal status are registered MediaL, according to state data. The program is a rescue buoy for people who have traditionally not had access to health insurance, and California is one of the six states that Offer coverage to immigrant adults It does not matter that they are in the country legally.

The head of the Senate minority, Brian Jones, said that Newsom had overvalued and under-distributed on health care at a time when all Californians find it difficult to afford the cost of living in the state.

“Democrats and the governor choose priorities, and they favor people who have entered our country illegally on people who have legally immigrants, citizens,” said Jones.

State medi-cali expansion for undocumented immigrants costs approximately $ 8.5 billion in the General State Fund Each year, according to A recent budget audience.

“If we do not spend eight billion dollars and a half for illegal immigrants, we would not need to borrow $ 3.4 billion to cover the difference,” said Jones.

HD Palmer, spokesperson for the State Finance Department, has recognized that the increase in spending is partially attributable to higher costs than the information costs associated with a higher number of registrations for the undocumented population of California. In January, THE Health Services DepartmentWho supervises Medi-Cal, California estimated at 2.7 billion dollars beyond what it is budgeted because of the cost of care coverage and prescriptions for newly registered immigrants.

But immigrants are not the only population that uses Medi-Cal more than the expected state.

California’s media population in general has climbed during the COVVI-19 pandemic when the federal government temporarily suspended income eligibility checks to maintain insured people during the national emergency. Before the pandemic, around 13 million people used Medi-Cal. This number culminated at 15.6 million in 2023 Eligibility checks have taken over. Today 14.9 million people are registered, according to State data.

The legislative analyst’s office has also noted 40% growth in the past four years in the number of elderly people registered in Medi-Cal. Although the elderly represent only around 10% of the registrants of the program, they represent a large part of the expenses of the program, because the advantages such as long -term care are among the most expensive.

Medi-calt spends about $ 15,000 a year per senior. This is compared to the $ 8,000 per year that the program spends on average on other registrants.

The Newsom office said that these problems are neither new nor unique in California. Medi-Cal is the Californian version of Medicaid, the Federal State program which offers national health coverage to low-income households.

“The costs of Medicaid costs is a national challenge, affecting red and blue states,” said Elana Ross, spokesperson for the Governor’s office, in an email.

Democrats are committed to protecting the health care of immigrants

Senator Roger Niello, a long -standing critic of the state -closed budgeting process, which is generally chopped between democratic leaders and the governor, has recognized that other factors such as higher inscriptions and high costs of drugs could contribute to the high costs. He said Republicans are worried about increasing the health care expenses for immigrants.

The Roseville Republican criticized the lack of transparency of the Newsom finance department.

“The completely opaque nature of demand, which says none of this, is entirely inappropriate,” said Niello.

Democratic legislators said they needed more information on what is exactly behind the increases in unexpected spending, but rejected the idea that the state would need to regain the coverage of its undocumented population.

“Workers and immigrant families, who pay billions of taxes, deserve access to care, and I am proud to protect California’s progress by widening Medi-Cal,” said Assembly President Robert Rivas in a press release. “There are difficult choices to come, and the Democrats of the Assembly will closely examine any proposal from the governor. But let’s be clear: we will not drive and will not leave our immigrants. »»

Immigrants without permanent status contribute approximately $ 8.5 billion in state and local taxes per yearAccording to an analysis of the California Budget and Policy Center, a non -profit research group. It is almost the same amount that it costs the state to give them Medi-Cal.

State legislators first authorized undocumented children to register in Medi-Cal in 2016 under Governor Jerry Brown. Since then, Newsom has approved the addition of young adults until the age of 25 in 2020 and older adults and the elderly in 2022. Adults aged 26 to 49 were the final group added in 2024. In these years, even Some Republican legislators have supported the coverage of this population.

“Republicans must take a better and lively look at the calendar associated with these extensions,” said the Mia Bonta assembly, an Oakland democrat who heads the health committee. “For them, trying to play the game of blame and put everything at the foot of the values ​​of California to ensure that we have a universal health coverage for all with this special age group included is simply specious.”

Billions more in potential cups of Medicaid

The Dawn Addis assembly, which presides over a budgetary subcommittee on health, said that it would closely question Newsom officials on the increase in the expenses of an upcoming audience.

“We must really understand the details of what the Ministry of Finance says, what the Executive sees and how they calculate this information,” said Addis, Democrat of San Luis Obispo.

Addis stressed that the biggest threat to Medi-Cal at the moment has come from the federal government.

The House Republicans recently voted to advance a proposal that could cause discounts of 880 billion dollars to a program of programslargely Medicaid, over the next 10 years. California Budget and Policy Center estimated that the proposals currently at stake at Congress could result in annual losses of $ 10 billion at $ 20 billion per year for the State.

“The reason why it is so important for us to fight against the federal levels at Medicaid is that there is no easy or painless solution to fill this budget hole,” said Amanda McAlister-Wallner, acting executive director of Health Access California.

Health Access California as well as California Immigrant Policy Center directed the campaign almost a decade ago to ensure all state immigrants.

Mallister-Wallner said it was unfair and unreasonable to pin the state’s budgetary deficit on immigrant extensions. During the same period, the state added advantages, as Doula and family therapy servicesAnd invested massively in system reform thanks to an initiative of several billion dollars called Calaim.

“These changes that we have made to Medi-Cal made the program stronger (and) made the state healthier,” said McAlister-Wallner.

Calmatters’ journalist Alexei Koseff contributed to this story.