Since January, undocumented Californians – who aren’t already registered – haven’t been able to enroll in Medi-Cal, the state’s low-income health insurance plan.
But Senate Bill 1422, which was introduced this week by Senator María Elena Durazo, aims to open up the program for undocumented enrollees by January of next year. Durazo said that cutting preventative care is not the right choice.
"These decisions do not save money for California. They shift the cost from the state onto the counties. They shift the cost from hospitals and clinics into emergency rooms. And ultimately, they shift the cost onto all of us."
The second bill that was introduced this week – Assembly Bill 2161 – aims to reverse work requirements for undocumented California residents who are already enrolled in Medi-Cal. Work requirements aren’t currently in effect, but they’re slated to start in January of 2027.
AB 2161 was co-authored by Oakland assemblymember Mia Bonta.
"Undocumented Californians contribute approximately 8.5 billion dollars annually in this state in local taxes. They build our housing, harvest our food, care for our children and elders, they are our entrepreneurs, our business people, and they are the fabric here in the state of California, and quite frankly the nation."
Both bills will make their way through committees before reaching the floor of the Senate and Assembly for a vote later this year.
Neither bill explicitly proposes where funding should come from, though parallel conversations about generating more revenue for the state – through policies like the billionaire’s tax ballot measure – remain ongoing.