Nearly six years after he took office vowing to be California’s “healthcare governor,” Democrat Gavin Newsom has steered tens of billions in public funding to safety net services for the state’s neediest residents while engineering rules to make healthcare more accessible and affordable for all Californians.
More than a million California residents living in the U.S. without authorization now qualify for Medi-Cal, the state’s version of Medicaid, making the Golden State among the first in the nation to cover low-income people regardless of their immigration status. The state is experimenting with Medicaid money to pay for social services such as housing and food assistance, especially for those living on the streets or with chronic diseases. And the state is forcing the healthcare industry to rein in soaring costs while imposing new rules on doctors, hospitals and insurers to provide better-quality, more accessible care.
However, Newsom has so far failed to fully deliver on his most sweeping healthcare policies — and many changes are not yet visible to the public: Healthcare costs continue to rise, homelessness is worsening, and many Californians still struggle to get basic medical care.
Now, some of the governor’s signature health initiatives, which could shape his profile on the national stage, are in peril as President-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House. According to national health policy experts, California stands to lose billions of dollars in healthcare funding should the Trump administration alter Medicaid programs, as Republicans have indicated is likely. Such a move could force the state to dramatically slash benefits or eligibility.
So, welfare benefits become so elastic that illegal aliens get health care. And health care expands to food and housing!
