Undocumented Immigrants Disenroll From Medi-Cal Amid Federal Policy Shifts

Nearly 100,000 immigrants without legal status disenrolled from California's Medi-Cal program between June and December 2025, according to an analysis by KFF Health News. The decline follows the implementation of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and executive orders from the Trump administration, alongside a November proposal to expand public charge criteria.

The United States Department of Homeland Security proposed the rule change to allow Medicaid usage to determine if an immigrant is likely to become dependent on the government, which could block permanent legal residency. The agency projects the shift could save federal and state governments nearly $9 billion annually. KFF analysis suggests the rule could eventually lead to between 1.3 million and 4 million total disenrollments from Medicaid or CHIP, including up to 1.8 million U.S. citizen children.

While the California Department of Health Care Services attributes the enrollment drops to the resumption of pandemic-era eligibility checks, researchers argue those checks concluded by mid-2024. Critics, including the California Immigrant Policy Center, contend that the federal policy shift is being used to create fear and anxiety among immigrant populations.