Gop Falsely Ties Shutdown To Democrats’ Alleged Drive To Give All Immigrants Health Care

As nan U.S. headed for a authorities shutdown, Republicans many times accused Democrats of forcing nan closure because they want to springiness wellness attraction entree to immigrants successful nan U.S. illegally.

“Democrats are threatening to unopen down nan full authorities because they want to springiness hundreds of billions of dollars of wellness attraction benefits to forbidden aliens,” Vice President JD Vance said Sept. 28 connected “Fox News Sunday.”

President Donald Trump, House Speaker Mike Johnson, and Republican members of Congress person repeated this line.

It's wrong.

Democrats person refused to ballot for Republicans' solution to widen nan national spending deadline, and their position does, successful part, hinge connected wellness attraction spending. Democrats want to widen covid pandemic-era Affordable Care Act subsidies that are group to expire astatine nan extremity of nan twelvemonth and rotation backmost Medicaid cuts successful nan taxation and spending measure that Trump signed into rule this summer. 

The Democrats’ proposal wouldn't springiness wellness attraction to immigrants who deficiency ineligible status; that organization is already mostly ineligible for federally funded wellness care. Instead, nan connection would reconstruct entree to definite wellness attraction programs for legally coming immigrants who will suffer entree nether nan Republican law.

The White House did not respond to PolitiFact's petition for remark for this truth check. Vance addressed criticism of his talking constituent successful different question and reply by saying it was included successful nan Democrats' spending proposal. It's not.

A White House X account followed up pinch screenshots of nan Democratic connection repealing a conception of nan Republican rule branded “alien Medicaid eligibility.” It's important to cognize that these changes would not springiness Medicaid entree to immigrants who deficiency lawful status.

Vance defended his connection again successful an Oct. 1 White House press conference, saying erstwhile President Joe Biden “waived distant forbidden migration status” that helped migrants entree national assistance. It's important to statement that galore people granted lawful status through humanitarian parole aliases Temporary Protected Status programs don't automatically suffice for Medicaid; TPS recipients aren't eligible, and galore group who entered nan U.S. connected humanitarian parole are required to hold 5 years earlier accessing it.

The Trump management has ended humanitarian parole and Temporary Protected Status for galore people, rendering them ineligible for Medicaid and wellness plans connected nan Affordable Care Act marketplace.

We did not find grounds that Democrats want to walk “hundreds of billions” successful costs for insuring migrants pinch unlawful presence.

Immigrants lacking ineligible position are already ineligible

Most national wellness attraction dollars cannot beryllium spent connected wellness attraction for group successful nan U.S. who deficiency ineligible status. They cannot enroll successful Medicaid aliases Medicare, and they are ineligible to acquisition wellness attraction sum done nan Affordable Care Act marketplace. A mini Medicaid programme reimburses hospitals for uninsured emergency care, which tin see immigrants successful nan state without authorization but is not exclusive to them.

States such arsenic California and Illinois expanded Medicaid sum for group sloppy of their migration status, and nan states salary for that. Federal rule already banned states from utilizing national money for these programs. An earlier version of nan Republican spending rule would person penalized specified states by withholding funding, but that proviso didn't last.

People successful nan state without support mightiness person immoderate federally funded wellness attraction successful emergency cases; successful those situations, hospitals must supply attraction moreover if a personification is uninsured aliases successful nan state illegally. Emergency Medicaid covers infirmary attraction for immigrants who would beryllium eligible for Medicaid if not for their migration status. The Republican taxation and spending law reduced the magnitude hospitals tin person for emergency migrant care.

Most Emergency Medicaid spending is utilized connected childbirth. In all, it represented little than 1% of full Medicaid spending successful fiscal twelvemonth 2023, according to KFF, a wellness accusation nonprofit that includes KFF Health News.

GOP rule constricted attraction entree for immigrants pinch ineligible status

The Republican taxation and spending rule made respective changes to wellness attraction eligibility for immigrants surviving successful nan state pinch permission. An estimated 1.4 cardinal ineligible immigrants are expected to suffer their wellness insurance, according to a KFF analysis of Congressional Budget Office projections. 

Starting October 2026, nan rule will restrict eligibility for Medicaid and nan Children’s Health Insurance Program to lawfully imperishable residents, group from nan Marshall Islands, Micronesia, aliases Palau who lawfully reside successful nan U.S. nether an international agreement, and certain Cubans and Haitians.

Previously, a wide group, described arsenic “qualified noncitizens,” was eligible for Medicaid and its related Children’s Health Insurance Program, known arsenic CHIP, including refugees and group granted asylum.

Some immigrants eligible for Medicaid and CHIP, specified arsenic lawful imperishable residents, are required to hold 5 years before accessing nan benefits. 

The rule besides constricted Affordable Care Act marketplace eligibility to nan aforesaid group eligible for Medicaid and CHIP opening Jan. 1, 2027. Previously, group who were described arsenic “lawfully present” were eligible. That group included nan “qualified noncitizens” eligible for Medicaid and group pinch short-term statuses, specified arsenic Temporary Protected Status aliases world students.

Beneficiaries of nan Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, known arsenic DACA, for immigrants who entered nan U.S. without authorization arsenic children were antecedently eligible for Affordable Care Act sum and its subsidies. They are ineligible since a Trump administration rule took effect successful August.

Democrats' connection would reconstruct ineligible immigrants' access

The Democrats' Sept. 17 budget proposal would, successful part, permanently extend the Affordable Care Act subsidies and rotation backmost billions successful Republican cuts to Medicaid and different wellness programs. 

The alteration would make Medicaid, CHIP, and Affordable Care Act sum disposable to each ineligible immigrants who were antecedently eligible for it, specified arsenic refugees and group granted asylum.

The Democratic connection would not broaden eligibility to federally funded wellness attraction programs to immigrants lacking ineligible status.

Vance said nan Democratic policies would “give hundreds of billions of dollars of wellness attraction benefits to forbidden aliens,” and nan White House did not connection its root for that figure. When Johnson was pressed to support a akin talking point, he referenced nan Congressional Budget Office. The KFF analysis of CBO estimates found that nan Republican law's provisions related to ineligible immigrants would trim national spending by $131 billion; this projection did not see an estimate for group without ineligible status.

Our ruling

Vance said, “Democrats are threatening to unopen down nan full authorities because they want to springiness hundreds of billions of dollars of wellness attraction benefits to forbidden aliens.”

Immigrants successful nan U.S. illegally are mostly ineligible for nan federally funded wellness attraction programs Medicare and Medicaid, and they cannot activity sum successful nan Affordable Care Act marketplace aliases use for subsidies.

The Democrats’ fund connection would not alteration that.

The Democrats want to reconstruct entree to definite wellness attraction programs to ineligible immigrants who will suffer entree nether nan Republican taxation and spending rule — among different measures aimed astatine making Medicaid and Affordable Care Act security plans easier to keep. 

Their connection would not assistance federally supported wellness attraction benefits to group successful nan U.S. illegally, because they did not person entree to them successful nan first place. The mini magnitude of backing designated for Emergency Medicaid reimburses hospitals that supply emergency attraction to immigrants who would beryllium eligible for Medicaid if not for their migration status. Finally, we did not find grounds for Vance's assertion that Democrats want “hundreds of billions” successful wellness benefits for migrants successful nan state illegally. 

We complaint nan connection False.