SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Leaders of California’s Democratic Legislative Latino Caucus on Monday said everything should be considered in order to keep providing health insurance to undocumented immigrants, including a new tax on Californians.
The leader of the caucus, State Sen. Lena Gonzalez, made the comment as the group held a news conference to blast Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed limits on the state’s Medi-Cal program, also known as Medicaid.
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Budget documents show California taxpayers this year have spent about $11 billion providing coverage to 1.6 million undocumented residents. State leaders underestimated just how much the program would cost this year.
The news conference comes after Gov. Gavin Newsom announced California is grappling with a budget shortfall of $12 billion and proposed limiting the program in order to save money.
“The rhetoric, what they want you to believe, is that our community is at fault for the state’s deficit,” said State Sen. Carolina Menjivar, D-Van Nuys. “But it’s not. Year after year, after year after entities and businesses are getting away with providing a less than livable wage, are getting away with forcing them into our state’s driven Medi-Cal program.”
According to the California Legislative Analyst, more than half of the state’s Medi-Cal funds come from the federal government. The federal government typically shares the cost of care for low-income Californians. But because of their immigration status, the federal government will not share the expenses or reimburse the state for the cost of providing healthcare to undocumented people. That means California taxpayers are on the hook for 100% of their healthcare.
The Latino Legislative Caucus did not offer or provide any specific solutions to the problem. The group took repeated questions from reporters about the possibility of making cuts to other state services or creating new taxes to help with the added costs.
on the hook for 100% of their healthcare…………………..
Don’t break the law and you will not be in this position.
Don’t encourage illegals and homeless with the carrot of your tax money and you will solve most of the issue of homeless on your streets.
In other words stop spending our money for your fantasy land junk.