Immigrant Health Coverage Proposed by California Lawmakers

A proposal announced by Democrat lawmakers would see California spending as much as $1 billion per annum on healthcare for undocumented immigrants. The proposal would remove the requirements for legal residency in the California version of the Medicaid program, Medi-Cal, already given to youngsters’ aged 19 and under.

The proposal is part of a new $4.3 billion spending plan suggested by San Francisco Democrat Assemblyman, Phil Ting, who is in charge of the budget committee. Assembly Democrats also want tax credits for the working poor, an increase in college scholarships to cut down on student loans, and a boost to childcare and preschool, with another $3.2 billion over current requirements to be added to the state budget reserves.

Democratic Governor, Jerry Brown, has been reluctant to provide more money to ongoing social services, and the proposal is the first shot in the Assembly’s six months worth of budget negotiations with him and the Senate. The rate of uninsured people has been significantly reduced in California since Obamacare came into effect, but seven percent of Californians still have no coverage. Many of them are undocumented immigrants, not eligible for healthcare assistance funded by the federal government.

Although the federal government covers almost 95 percent of the Medi-Cal costs for legal residents and those with US citizenship, California would have to pay the cost of covering undocumented immigrants by itself, something that may prove to be contentious for state lawmakers.