CBO: Medicaid Spending on Illegal Aliens Has Cost Taxpayers over $16.2 Billion Under Open Border Czar Harris

CBO: Medicaid Spending on Illegal Aliens Has Cost Taxpayers over $16.2 Billion Under Open Border Czar Harris

WASHINGTON, D.C. - This week, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released its analysis of the cost to taxpayers of Vice President Kamala Harris' open border agenda on the Medicaid program. CBO estimates that the Biden-Harris Administration's open border agenda cost federal and state taxpayers more than $16.2 billion to provide Medicaid-funded emergency services to illegal aliens since taking office. This is a staggering increase of 124% compared to the same period under the Trump Administration.

This analysis responds to a request from House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington (R-TX) calling on CBO to produce an analysis of Medicaid spending on emergency services for illegal aliens.

Chairman Arrington's Statement:

"The Congressional Budget Office's analysis confirms that the mass migration of illegal immigrants is costing billions of dollars to Medicaid - a program created to serve the health care needs of the most vulnerable Americans. This is on top of the executive action taken to provide $9 billion in Obamacare to illegal immigrants.

This Administration's failure to secure the border not only brought millions of aliens unlawfully into the country but has also drained federal resources and disincentivized individuals from pursuing legal avenues for migration.

With over $16.2 billion flowing from federal and state governments' coffers to pay for emergency services for illegal aliens, it is clear that Open Border Czar Vice President Harris's failed border policies remain the greatest threat to both the United States's national security and our economic standing."

Background:

President Clinton signed into law the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) which barred illegal aliens from accessing most federal benefits, including Medicaid.

Despite PRWORA's limitation on illegal aliens receiving federally funded Medicaid benefits, such aliens may receive Medicaid benefits for emergency services.

Specifically, Medicaid is required to cover health care services necessary to treat an emergency medical condition for illegal aliens who would otherwise qualify for Medicaid if not for their immigration status.

The Bottom Line:

Our unprecedented $35 trillion national debt is unsustainable and poses a significant risk to our nation's fiscal security. The Biden-Harris Administration's open border policies have led to millions of illegal aliens flooding across the Southwest border and ultimately tapping into health care benefits financed by hardworking Americans' tax dollars.

House Budget Committee Republicans are leading the charge to fully understand the budgetary effects of the surge in illegal migration and the impact on critical federal health care programs such as Medicaid, which must be safeguarded for the most vulnerable American citizens.

More from the House Budget Committee:

Read more about Chairman Arrington asking CBO to analyze the cost to taxpayers of the Biden-Harris Border Crisis on the Medicaid program HERE.

Read more about the cost of the Biden-Harris Border Crisis HERE.

Read Chairman Arrington's statement on the President signing H.R. 7032, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Data Sharing Act into law HERE.

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