Study reveals how much states spend on emergency Medicaid for undocumented immigrants

Emergency Medicaid for undocumented immigrants made up only 0.4% of total Medicaid spending in 2022, a new study finds. Researchers from Emory University; University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora; and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health looked at financial management report data for fiscal year 2022 from the Medicaid Budget and Expenditure System. Of the 38 states that had data and Washington, D.C., the team found that emergency Medicaid spending for undocumented immigrants amounted to about $9.63 for every resident in those states, according to the research letter published Thursday morning in JAMA. Supporters of the 2025 Budget Reconciliation law say the cuts to Medicaid will only affect care for groups whom they believe should not be receiving it to begin with, such