California Gov. Gavin Newsom will unveil a budget plan on Wednesday that would cut health care benefits for undocumented immigrants, his office said.
The proposed plan, which Newsom’s office said would help to balance the state’s budget, would be a stark reversal of the Democratic governor’s promises of universal health care for all, including “all low-income adults” regardless of their immigration status.
“Despite federal financial uncertainty, Governor Newsom will announce an effort to continue providing health insurance to undocumented Californians, but with new rules in place to curtail costs,” Newsom spokesperson Izzy Gardon said in an email.
The move, which Newsom is expected to announce at a budget presentation later Wednesday, comes as President Donald Trump’s administration has said it will investigate other aid programs California offers to undocumented immigrants.
Fact sheets on the proposal provided by Newsom’s office said that he would freeze enrollment in his 2025-26 budget for “undocumented adults” to receive the full scope of the state’s Medicaid program, known as Medi-Cal. Newsom’s office said the changes would apply only to new applicants over 19 years old, that existing enrollees would not be kicked off their plans and that the freeze would not apply to people enrolled in limited plans, like ones that specifically cover emergency or pregnancy services. The freeze would begin in 2026.
The proposed changes also include a new $100 monthly premium for adults 19 and older with “unsatisfactory immigration status.” Newsom’s office said that “refers to people whose immigration status makes them ineligible for federally funded Medicaid, including people with lawful status and the undocumented.” The added premiums would begin in 2027.
The fact sheets from Newsom’s office also said he needed to take “corrective action” due to a $16 billion shortfall in state revenues that it blamed on “Trump’s pendulum swings on tariffs,” as well as growing costs from higher enrollment in Medi-Cal.
The plan also comes as congressional Republicans are advancing a bill that would slash Medicaid funding by 10 percent to states that, like California, provide health care coverage to undocumented immigrants.
Newsom’s expansion of Medi-Cal has cost far more than his administration anticipated. Earlier this year, Newsom made consecutive loan requests to help fund rising costs that were specifically the product of increased enrollment in the offered programs by undocumented immigrants living in California.
Newsom’s office said the moves proposed in his budget, which would need to be approved by the Democratic-controlled state Legislature, would save the state an estimated $5.4 billion by the 2028-29 budget year.
The proposals mark a significant departure from Newsom’s ground-breaking plan to expand government-provided health care for all low-income adults, including immigrants living in the country illegally. Those expansions have caused costs to balloon by billions of dollars in recent years.
A statement printed on materials provided by Newsom’s office claimed that the changes would help his administration keep its commitment and that the governor “remains committed to protecting” immigrant communities.
“California is leading the nation in expanding health care access. While fiscal headwinds require tough decisions right now, our commitment to access remains,” the statement said. “These changes are designed to preserve that commitment, protect coverage for millions of Californians, and preserve the strength of our values and health care system.”
Newsom, widely viewed as a potential contender for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination, has tacked to the right on a series of notable policy issues in recent months.
Earlier this week, Newsom called on California cities to adopt policies that would clear their streets of homeless encampments “without delay.”
And during a podcast interview with conservative commentator and Trump ally Charlie Kirk, Newsom infuriated some allies in the LGBTQ community when he said he opposes trans athletes competing in women’s and girls’ sports.
