Trump administration moves to stop Medicaid funds to illegal immigrants
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Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz announced Thursday that an internal review found more than $1 billion in Medicaid payments to illegal immigrants in several states, a problem he said is being corrected by the Trump administration.
“The Democrats have been shining a spotlight on us for quite a while on this issue of Medicaid funds going to illegal immigrants,” Oz said on “Fox & Friends.”
Health care for illegal immigrants is a major problem extending the latest government shutdown, which is now entering its third week. Republicans accuse Democrats of letting federal health care funds go to illegal immigrants while obstructing efforts to reduce government waste.
Oz said his agency’s investigation into the matter is “just beginning” and the latest numbers cover only a few states.
FED AUDIT AND EMERGENCY MEDICAID UNDERCUT DEMS ON HEALTH COVERAGE FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS
Dr. Mehmet Oz, Administrator of Medicare and Medicaid Services, speaks during a news conference with Senate Republican leaders following their weekly policy luncheon in Washington, DC, September 16. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)
“If you live in Texas or Florida and pay U.S. federal taxes — most people do — your money is being diverted to places like California, which offer strong benefits to illegal immigrants,” he said.
“Now we are investigating this, and we [going to] continue to follow this across the country.
Democrats have refused to budge on reopening the government, saying they won’t vote for a funding bill unless it includes an extension of enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies that expire in 2025. They argue that failing to act before open enrollment begins in November could leave millions of Americans facing higher premiums.
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Yet the White House says Democrats want to spend billions of dollars on Medicaid coverage for illegal immigrants.
“The Democrats’ proposal would result in spending nearly $200 billion on health care for illegal immigrants and other noncitizens over the next decade, enough to fund the entire Children’s Health Insurance program,” the White House said in an online statement.
Oz called the issue a moral one, saying taxpayer dollars should not fund health care for people who don’t pay into the system.
“You can’t just hand this out to valid illegal immigrants in the states because they think it’s the right thing to do,” he said.
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“If they want to pay for it, they should pay for it.”
Dr. Mehmet Oz, Administrator of Medicare and Medicaid Services, attends a news conference at the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, DC, June 30. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
Federal law prohibits illegal immigrants from enrolling in Medicaid, but some states take advantage of loopholes to extend certain Medicaid-funded health benefits to them.
Oz said his agency is now looking to fill those gaps.
“We will get all this money back into our federal coffers. The president is single-mindedly focused on protecting the American taxpayer.”
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