Democratic Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker halts the health care program for illegal immigrants due to its tremendous cost to the state.
According to Breitbart News, the program would secure taxpayer-funded healthcare benefits for illegal immigrants, but Republicans across the blue state had warned that the program could cost the state’s taxpayers billions.
“We need to make sure we are living within our fiscal limits in the state of Illinois,” Pritzker announced this week. “That is something that wasn’t done for a lot of years.”
Republican State Rep. Norine Hammond said in April that the “dramatic growth” in the state’s immigrant population and their enrollment for healthcare benefits “will require nearly a billion dollars in general revenue funds to support this program in Fiscal Year 2024.”
This comes after the Biden administration lifted “Title 42” recently, increasing the number of illegal border crossers to an all-time high. According to the Department of Homeland Security, nearly 2.4 million migrants were detained at the border for the fiscal year ending in September, surpassing the already-historic number of 1.7 million migrant detainees in 2021.
In Illinois, nearly 700,000 illegal immigrants have been living in the sanctuary state. The program will be kept in place for only a certain number of older illegals.
While Illinois was right to deny illegal immigrants free healthcare, other blue states, such as Minnesota, are even providing illegals with free college tuition at the expense of the state’s taxpayer money.
Minnesota recently approved its “North Star Promise” program, which offers free college tuition to all residents whose families earn less than $80,000 annually, regardless of their immigration status.
The program’s eligibility requirements, however, are causing disagreement among Minnesotans. In order to qualify, students need to graduate from a state high school, reside in the state for at least 12 months without being enrolled in college more than half-time, and maintain good academic standing.
Many Republicans pointed out that the $80,000 maximum is unfair to young adults whose parents may be working several jobs but could still utilize financial aid. Other critics noted that “nothing in life is free,” and therefore tax payers will be the ones footing the bill.
