House GOP Plans To Strip Billions From States That Give Illegal Migrants Free Healthcare

House Republicans released a new Medicaid plan that would significantly cut federal funding for states that provide taxpayer-funded health coverage to illegal migrants.

Under the proposal, any state that offers Medicaid or similar state-funded healthcare programs to illegal migrants could lose billions in federal funds. Seven states — California, New York, Illinois, Oregon, Washington, Colorado and Minnesota — currently provide state healthcare benefits to non-citizens.

Federal law prohibits non-citizens from receiving Medicaid, but several blue states have created workaround programs that mirror the federal system. California was the first to launch a state healthcare plan for illegal migrants, offering full coverage through its Medi-Cal program to anyone under the age of 50 who meets income requirements, regardless of immigration status, the Los Angeles Times reported. The state spent more than $9.5 billion providing healthcare benefits to 1.5 million illegal migrants last year.

The House GOP’s plan would dramatically increase the cost burden on those states. Currently, the federal government covers 90% of the cost of Medicaid expansion, with states paying the remaining 10%. The Republican proposal would drop the federal share to 80% for states that continue covering non-citizens, forcing those states to cover 20% of the costs themselves, according to Axios.