Springfield – The government of Gov. JB Pritzker has the costs and popularity of a few health insurance programs for immigrants who have not cost the State, $ 1.6 billion led since the initiative in 2020 underestimated a lot, according to an audit report released on Wednesday.
Apart from inaccurate projections of the costs of the programs and the number of people who would register, the audit discovered more than 6,000 people who were registered in the programs mentioned as “undocumented” despite the fact that Sofi numbers, and almost 700 who were registered in the program for people 65 and older despite being younger than that. Moreover, nearly 400 people were registered for the programs, but seemed to have been in the country long enough to qualify for Medicaid, which is jointly financed by the federal government.
The report of Illinois Auditor General Frank Mautino's Office was published a week after Pritzker suggested to eliminate the financing for the program that offers a medicoid style insurance coverage for people younger than 65 who are in the country without legal permission, but are not yet qualified for a green card for a green card. The reduction, an estimated $ 330 million to save, was part of Pritzker's plan to close a budget hole as soon as they kept more than $ 3 billion.
The cost overruns were particularly pronounced in the program for younger recipients, with the actual expenditure of $ 485 million during the three years ending on June 30, 2023, which, according to the audit, received almost four times the estimated costs of $ 126 million.
During a press conference in Chicago on Wednesday to announce another round of medical debt lighting for residents of Illinois, Pritzker did not answer immediately when he was asked why the estimates that his administration used for the programs was so far away. Instead, he said that some individuals were sometimes held a period of the programs before the state found that they were no longer eligible, either because of a change in immigration or employment status or another factor.
Despite his proposal to abolish the financing for the coverage of those younger than 65 hours, Pritzker repeated his support for universal health care coverage in a non -specific form.
“The broader context is that people should receive healthcare,” said Pritzker and added: “It is any evidence, that there are a huge number of people who need coverage who don't get it or who will do something to get it, and I think that is a sad state of affairs in our society.”
From December there were 41,505 people who participated in the programs – one for those aged 65 and older, one for those younger than 65. About 80% of them were in the program for younger immigrants for whom Pritzker proposed to eliminate the financing from 1 July.
Illinois initially did not offer medicoid style coverage for health care for non-citizens aged 65 and older in 2020 in the context of a program called Health benefits for immigrants seniors. This group of recipients was not eligible for the traditional health insurance program for the poor, which is jointly funded by the federal government.
This health care initiative run by the state has been expanded twice and now covers the 42 and older. The balloon costs of the program complicated budget negotiations complicated two years ago.
Together the two programs do not extend to the asylum seekers arriving from the southern American border in Chicago.
The two programs that were launched in Illinois at a time when medicaid recovery-annual checks that check whether a registered person is eligible for that benefit of the Federal Government paused during the COVID-19 Pandemie.
But the costs for the programs were ultimately stretched and the issue has wrapped the general meeting in recent years. In February 2023, Pritzker took steps to limit the registration in the programs after an initial cost estimate of his administration of $ 220 million five -time three months later to $ 1.1 billion. In the end, just over $ 500 million was put aside aside in the budget that was adopted by the legislative power.
Last year the governor announced plans to cut no fewer than 6,000 health care recipients in the two programs to save more money.
In the past, Pritzker has defended immigrant health care as a government effort to save more tax money by providing this type of coverage to non -citizens by keeping them out of first aid and hospitals. But hours after he announced his budget proposal last week, Pritzker explained how there were people of working age in the 42-to-64 program that was able to find a better paid job later “that is connected to it.”
“Yes, we make sacrifices to the budget,” said Pritzker in his ceremonial office in the capitol of the state. “I make sacrifices about things that are important to me.”
_____
(Petrella reported from Chicago. Tribune reporter Olivia Olander contributed.)
_____
