Madi Bolanos
Laura Cruz, 52, pulls out the salsa from her fridge in her home in Kern County. She’s preparing lunch for her 12-year-old daughter, who will be arriving home from summer school.
Cruz is undocumented. When she first arrived in Bakersfield from Mexico in 2003, she cleaned houses and took care of the children of farmworkers in her neighborhood.
Seven years later, doctors diagnosed her with lupus, an autoimmune disease that causes the immune system to attack the body s organs. Because of her diagnosis and documentation status, Cruz says it’s been hard for her to find work, making her husband the sole provider for their family.
California extends public health care to another 235,000 undocumented adults
State expands Medi-Cal to low-income adults 50+
More undocumented individuals are getting Medi-Cal.
and last updated 2021-06-30 21:18:33-04
SAN DIEGO (KGTV) Nearly 250,000 undocumented immigrants will soon be eligible for low-cost health care funded by the state government, under a plan that is now awaiting the governorâs signature.
The state budget passed by the Legislature this week expands Medi-Cal coverage for income-eligible people aged 50 and older regardless of their immigration status. It gives California the most expansive coverage in the U.S. for people without legal status.
Governor Gavin Newsom is expected to sign the state budget by Thursday. The new health coverage would begin in May 2022.
Jun. 26 Gov. Gavin Newsom and the California Legislature on Friday unveiled a state budget plan that would expand Medi-Cal coverage to low-income, undocumented adults and seniors ages 50 and over. State leaders are expected to sign the deal next week. The proposed expansion makes California closer to potentially becoming the first state in the nation to extend health care coverage to all its .
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Advocacy groups said they will appeal to lawmakers and Newsom to go further in providing healthcare to immigrants without legal status, many of whom held essential jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic but were ineligible for federal relief programs and unemployment benefits. A Public Policy Institute of California poll in March found that 66% of Californians support offering healthcare coverage to immigrants who are in the country illegally.
“Everyone has been talking for the past year or more about how certain communities were disproportionally impacted by the pandemic, such as undocumented and low-income Californians,” said Sarah Dar, the director of health and public benefits policy at the California Immigrant Policy Center. “Now, with the $75 billion, we have to fix those structural issues and ensure the safety net programs help all communities. Now is the time to do as much as we can.”