Credit: Gage Skidmore / Flickr
California Governor Gavin Newsom is scaling back his ludicrous pledge to offer free healthcare to all illegal aliens in the state.
His 2025–26 budget proposal, released Wednesday, includes a freeze on new Medi-Cal enrollments for adults without legal immigration status and imposes a $100 monthly premium for those already enrolled.
The freeze would begin in 2026, affecting new applicants over the age of 19.
According to Newsom’s office, the change will not impact those currently enrolled or those receiving limited emergency or maternity coverage.
The new premium would apply starting in 2027 to all adults with what the administration calls “unsatisfactory immigration status,” a term that includes both illegal aliens and certain legal residents ineligible for federal Medicaid.
Newsom’s office says the revised policy is necessary due to a $16 billion shortfall in state revenue, driven in part by ballooning Medi-Cal costs linked to his earlier expansions.
Rather than his own failings and the mismanagement of Democratic authorities, Newsom cited Trump’s decision to impose tariffs as justification for the shortfall.
“California is under assault,” Newsom said. “The United States of America, in many respects, is under assault because we have a president that’s been reckless in terms of assaulting growth engines.”
However, Newsom insisted that he was not cancelling the program altogether.
“We’re just capping it, particularly for those without documentation,” he explained.
”Clearly we’re not in a position to continue to do as much as we wish to do and want to do.”
The state previously approved significant funding increases to expand Medi-Cal to low-income illegal aliens, but costs quickly spiralled.
Newsom’s administration had already approved a $2.8 billion appropriation and taken out a $3.4 billion loan this year to cover growing Medi-Cal expenses.
The proposed changes are projected to save $5.4 billion by the 2028–29 budget cycle, although this still covers less than half of California’s overall deficit.
Newsom’s office maintains that he “remains committed to protecting immigrant communities.”
However, the shift marks a clear departure from his earlier universal healthcare ambitions and signals a broader pivot away from far-left progressivism, as he positions himself for a widely speculated 2028 presidential bid.
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