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'So Thankful’: California to Offer Medi-Cal to 235,000 Undocumented Adults

Publication: KQED Radio

Nearly a quarter of a million undocumented adults and seniors in California – many of whom are or have been essential workers – will gain access to low-cost or free medical services as early as next year under a groundbreaking budget deal approved Monday by the Legislature.

California is now positioned to officially become the first state in the nation to offer public health insurance to low-income, undocumented residents ages 50 and older, a highly vulnerable population which has been made even more vulnerable by the deadly COVID-19 pandemic.

... Assembly Budget Chair Phil Ting, D-San Francisco, said the record-breaking budget presents a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

“This is a budget that really demonstrates that our values are protecting the most vulnerable families, the families who need our help the most in the time of the pandemic. But also well into the future,” Ting said.