California’s Uninsured in 2024: Medi-Cal Expands to All Low-Income Adults, But Half a Million Undocumented Californians Lack Affordable Coverage Options (UCLA Center for Health Policy Research and the UC Berkeley Labor Center)
Summary: California’s historic expansion of Medi-Cal eligibility to all low-income Californians regardless of immigration status is scheduled to go into effect in January of 2024, when low-income undocumented adults ages 26-49 will become eligible for full-scope Medi-Cal coverage.
Findings: Authors project that after the new enrollment has taken place, California’s uninsured population will decrease to a record low of 2.57 million under age 65. This represents substantial progress in access to health insurance. Close to 1 million undocumented Californians will have gained access to Medi-Cal through the expansions to children, young adults, older adults, and now adults ages 26-49. However, they also project there will be 520,000 uninsured undocumented residents who earn too much for Medi-Cal and do not have employer coverage. This group remains categorically excluded from enrolling in Covered California and cannot receive federal subsidies to make coverage more affordable.
This policy brief is a joint effort by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research and the UC Berkeley Labor Center.
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