Illinois slashes healthcare for illegal immigrants

Illinois authorities are preparing to make cuts to two state-sponsored health insurance programs that provide coverage for non-citizens and undocumented immigrants, due to the costs significantly exceeding their initial estimates.

Last week, the state issued a notice indicating that adjustments to the eligibility criteria for the Healthcare Benefits for Immigrant Adults and Seniors program are imminent, following the program's expenses rising to over $1 billion in the past year, Fox News reported.

Starting April 1, undocumented immigrants and non-citizen green card holders who have lived in the U.S. for less than five years will be excluded from these two health insurance schemes, as confirmed by the Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS).

"The Department is also committed to ensuring that individuals who are no longer eligible for benefits…  receive helpful information about their options so they can connect to alternative coverage, particularly through the federal ACA Marketplace," the statement read.

HFS has projected that a minimum of 6,000 individuals will be without coverage by May 1.

"The redetermination process ensures that those who are enrolled remain eligible for coverage," HFS spokesperson Jamie Munks told WBEZ Chicago in a statement. "If an individual loses coverage through the redetermination process, it is because they no longer meet eligibility requirements, or they are required to respond or submit additional information to prove their continued eligibility, but they do not do so."

In 2020, the state initiated Medicaid-like benefits for individuals aged 65 and above, and last year, it broadened this coverage to include those aged 42 and over.

At a Joint Committee on Administrative Rules meeting on Tuesday, Dana Kelly, the chief of staff for Healthcare and Family Services, reportedly informed legislators that eliminating ineligible participants from the program would result in savings of more than $13 million.