Overview

• The government entered a funding lapse as a White House memo claimed repealing GOP health provisions would steer nearly $192 billion over 10 years to care for immigrants in the country illegally.
• PolitiFact rated as false repeated statements from JD Vance and other Republicans that Democrats want “hundreds of billions” for health benefits to people here illegally.
• Federal law bars undocumented immigrants from enrolling in Medicaid, Medicare, or ACA plans, and emergency Medicaid spending is a small fraction of overall Medicaid outlays.
• Democrats’ proposal would extend ACA subsidies and reverse GOP cuts by restoring eligibility for legal immigrants who were previously covered, not by expanding federal benefits to undocumented immigrants.
• A 2024 federal audit said California improperly sought $52.7 million in Medicaid capitation for people with unsatisfactory immigration status, while some right-leaning reports allege larger state schemes that Democrats such as Rep. Ro Khanna say represent a very small share of the funding at issue.