California immigrants questioned medical coverage for fear of deportation

For several months, Maria, 55, struggled with the older career in Orange County, so that she did not smile.

It worries that if he opens his mouth a lot, people see the teeth of the ship building and the covered plate. The immigrant without papers, Maria does not have medical insurance or teeth. When your teeth begin to harm, take analgesics. Last summer, a dentist told him that he would cost him the dental set will cost him $ 2,400. It is more than you can.

“It is very expensive,” said Maria, who usually works 12 hours a day, gets out of bed to customers and helps them in medicines and with homework. “I need money for my children, for rent, for transportation, for food. Sometimes, nothing remains for me.”

A defensive organization for migrant workers is putting KFF Health news with Maria. For fear of deportation, he only asked to use his first name in this article.

Maria from 2.6 million immigrants Those who live in California without legal status, according to federal government estimates.

The state gradually searched these immigrants on its Medicaid program, known as Medi-Cal.

But now, given the freezing of state records, California residents with low incomes in the country without papers, along with community workers and workers who help them, with insomnia in assessing the benefits of progress with Medi-Cal requests in the face of the risks of discovering and deporting them by the federal government.

The California Legislative Authority, which seeks to close an expected budget deficit of $ 12 billion, agreed to a proposal from the Democratic Governor Gavin New Love to end the Medi-Cal registration in January 2026 for those over the age of 19 years without legal status. Legislators are in the process of determining the final details of the budget agreement before entering the new fiscal year.

Meanwhile, federal immigration raids, which appear to have affected At least a health clinic In the state, they are already causing medical attention, according to defenders of immigrants and health suppliers.

It is expected to inform the last news from Trump administration officials Share data from the beneficiaid beneficiariesIncluding immigration mode, with Erosione immigration authorities more confident in the program.

Andrew Nixon, the official spokesman for the Humanitarian and Humanitarian Services of the United States (HHS), said that the agency, which supervises Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), has the legal authority to exchange data and processing “unprecedented medical neglect to access Access Medical, especially in the country in California.

To increase the complexity of the situation, the Trump administration He threatened to keep the money One of the countries that provides medical coverage for people is without legal status.

Currently, about 1.6 million people residing in the country are registered without documents at Medi-Cal.

In 2016, California began expanding the scope of low -income people without legal status, starting with children, and then gradually expanded to young people, older adults, and in January this year, to people between the ages of 26 and 49 years. Department of Government Medical Care Services, which supervises Medi-Cal, Associated with community health clinics To help register qualified people.

It is too early to determine the impact of the latest federal and state procedures on registration numbers, because the data is only available until March. However, many suppliers and defenders confirmed that they expect a negative impact on the registration of migrants, in fear.

Secia Aquino is the executive director of the Latin Latin California Health Coalition, which supports community health promoters, who help spread the Medi-Cal expansion of adults without papers. A little more than half of the beneficiaries General Medical Insurance in California Latinion, compared only to 30 % of the beneficiaries of medical aid Throughout the country.

Akino said that their alliance would ask the promoters to inform them of the risks of data sharing so that community members can make enlightened decisions. “They are taking seriously that the council that they gave a member of society can now harm them,” he said.

Newsom condemned the exchange of data, describing it as “legally doubtful”, while They demanded The Ministry of National Security (DHS) destroys any joint data.

The California Medical Services Department announced on June 13 that it is asking for more information from the federal government. the The agency said This was sent monthly reports to CMS with demographic and private information, including name and address, as required by law.

According to the informed, data from Illinois Medicaid companies, Washington and Washington, DC, have been shared with DHS DHS

Jimmy Mix, a spokeswoman for the Ministry of Medical Welfare and Family Services in Illinois, said the government agency in the Medicaid program, that the administration “is deeply concerned” about the news, and that the data has been transferred regularly to CMS with an understanding that it was protected.

In Sacramento, Democratic lawmakers found themselves in the embarrassing situation of having to reduce the health benefits of low residents who suffer from an unsatisfactory migration, including people who have no legal status, persons with permanent residency (green card or green card) for a period The invitation.

In addition to supporting the registration freezing to Medi-Cal for immigrants over the age of 19 years and who reside in the country without documents, legislators agreed to collect monthly installments for all the population with an improper migration between 19 and 59 years. Newsom proposed a monthly installment of $ 100 from January 2027; the Anti -state lawmakers One of $ 30 from July 2027.

“What I listen to in places is that people tell me that it will be very difficult to pay these distinguished payments, whether it is $ 100 or $ 30,” said Carlos Alarkon, a health policy analyst and the general advantages of the California Migrant Policy Center, a defensive group. “The truth is that most people have limited budgets.”

The legislative body rejected the ruler’s proposal to ban immigrants who are obtaining an uncontrolled migration for long-term care in housing from the elderly and home care through Medi-Cal, but accepted the elimination of the benefits of teeth from July 2026.

Medical care providers confirmed that without covering Medi-Cal, many immigrants will have to request emergency care, which is more expensive for taxpayers than preventive and external care.

Sepideh Tghvaei, Director of Dentistry in Santa Cruz Province, witnessed this phenomenon in 2009, when the mandate is Reducing the benefits of teeth from Medi-Cal For adults. Patients have arrived with an inflatable face and unbearable pain, with such advanced conditions that need hospital treatment. “This is not profitable,” he said.

Senator Roger Niello, Republican and Vice-Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, said that California should not finance Medi-Cal for people who have no legal status, especially given the financial challenges of the state. He also expressed concern about the possibility of covering those who reside in the country without papers to encourage others to move to California.

“If we maintain these expenses for non -residents, we will have to cut them in other areas, and this will certainly affect citizens,” he said.

California residents also change their minds. In a survey conducted in May by the California Public Policy Institute, 58 % of adults opposed this benefit.

For Maria, the changes in health policies left paralyzed. He said that since his arrival here five years ago, his priority was to earn money to preserve his three children, whom he left with his parents in his country of origin.

Women did not know that she could be eligible to get Medi-Cal until the beginning of this year and had no time to complete the papers. After a friend told her that the country could freeze registration in January, she began to rush to complete the registration process.

But then he learned that Medi-Cal data had been shared with immigration authorities. “With disappointment and fear,” describing his reaction.

Suddenly, registration in Medi-Cal does not seem a good idea.

Phil Galewewitz and Bram Sabable-Smith contributed to this article.

This story was produced by KFF Health NewsWhich is published California HealthyinIndependent editorial service for California Health Care Corporation.