Battle Heats Up: Undocumented Immigrants' Health Insurance Clash at MN Capitol

Amid ongoing budget talks at the Minnesota Capitol, Republican representatives in both the House and Senate have zeroed in on a specific issue: government-funded healthcare for unauthorized immigrants.

"Republicans do not think it's right to spend hundreds of millions of tax dollars on healthcare for unauthorized immigrants," stated Senator Jordan Rasmusson from Fergus Falls (R).

The suggested Republican legislation aims to limit undocumented immigrants from accessing state-supported public services via the low-income healthcare initiative called MinnesotaCare, which began operating in January.

"We’re discussing individuals who contribute $220 million annually in taxes within the state,” Senator Alice Mann (DFL - Edina) contended. “These are our fellow citizens, those whom we encounter at work, as well as parents whose kids attend schools alongside ours. All of us are members of the great State of Minnesota.”

The Minnesota Department of Human Services estimates that the program will incur costs totaling $200 million over a span of four years. Nonetheless, according to the State DHS, during the initial three-month period of this year, enrollment included over 17,000 undocumented immigrants, whereas the forecast for this same duration had anticipated only around 5,700 enrollees.

"By ensuring individuals have coverage and funding for healthcare, hospitals can reinvest these resources into delivering additional services, thus maintaining a stronger and more resilient medical ecosystem," Senator Mann stated. She contends that the resolution is driven solely by politics and unfairly blames a segment of the population that did not contribute to the issue.

Senator Rasmusson expresses worry that the program might be drawing undocumented immigrants to Minnesota due to the available benefits.

"If we fail to tackle this issue during this session, it might result in an even larger gap in our state budget by next year," Rasmusson stated.

As per the State Department of Human Services (DHS), despite over 17,000 undocumented immigrants enrolling, only 3,378 individuals sought healthcare services as of April 1. According to the DHS, their February 2025 budget estimate predicted spending of $3.0 million during the initial quarter of 2025; however, the real costs amounted to $3.3 million.

According to a statement from DHS to KARE 11, the initial three-month period of enrollment shows spending consistent with the February projection, anticipating outlays of around $200 million during fiscal years 2025 through 2028. The agency noted that current trends do not indicate substantial increases in expenses moving ahead. Nonetheless, they emphasized that three months' worth of information isn’t sufficient enough to accurately gauge costs over the coming four-year span. Further details based on several more months of real expense records for this group will become accessible for the November 2025 estimate.

The HF10 bill would disqualify undocumented immigrants from being eligible for the North Star Promise scholarship program.

Minnesota is among just three states offering publicly funded health-care coverage to undocumented residents irrespective of their age. Oregon and California are the other two states with this policy.