This will probably turn a few heads. The California state assembly has voted to “remove the legal residency requirements” for participation in the state’s Medicaid program. (That’s the California version, known as Medi-Cal, as opposed to federal Medicaid.) While certainly a political winner in a midterm year among the state’s most vocal liberals, Sacramento may be setting themselves up for some serious pain further down the road. (Modern Health)

California’s General Assembly has passed a bill to become the first state to extend Medicaid coverage to immigrants, regardless of their status. The bill, known as AB 2965, passed the Democratic-controlled Assembly 33-21 on Wednesday. The proposal would eliminate legal residency requirements in California’s Medicaid program, known as Medi-Cal, and the state has already nixed the requirement for individuals younger than 19. Offering full-cost coverage would cost the state $3 billion for the 2018-2019 year, according to California’s Legislative Analyst’s Office.

Did you notice what they estimated the cost to be? An extra $3B just this year. And that’s when they’re already scrambling to figure out what they’ll do when they lose all the revenue from the new gas tax in the upcoming referendum. California previously talked about a single payer plan to cover all of the people legally in the state and that one would have shot their budget into an orbit around Uranus.

And if the bill for all of these illegal aliens becomes too much, analysts are already predicting that they might need to go the federal government for more help. Just for a moment let’s pretend that such a request wouldn’t send President Trump into gales of laughter. Any time you begin talking about Medicaid dollars for illegal aliens at the federal level you run into some immediate problems. For one thing, according to the federal Medicaid website, it’s almost never allowed.

The following groups may be eligible for Medicaid and CHIP:

– Qualified non-citizens who entered before 8/96

– Qualified Immigrants who reach end of 5 year waiting period (i.e LPRs/green card holders)

– Qualified Immigrants exempt from 5-year waiting period (e.g., Refugees, Asylees, Cuban/Haitian entrants, Trafficking Victims, Veteran families)

• No federal funding to cover undocumented immigrants, except for payment for limited emergency services

The “qualified citizens” list is fairly explicit as well. It doesn’t include illegal aliens.

Just one more example of the elected leaders in Sacramento scratching their heads and trying to think of anything else they can possibly do to bait the White House. But this program is going to cost them a bundle if they pass it. They’ll also likely attract illegal aliens from other states who want to move there and sign up for all the benefits. If they’re not careful, California is going to woke themselves right into bankruptcy.