2024 Medi-Cal Expansion & Public Charge

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Key Insights

Starting January 2024, income-eligible Californians, regardless of immigration status, may qualify for full-scope Medi-Cal.
Full scope Medi-Cal covers a wide range of services including medical, dental, mental health, and substance abuse treatment, while emergency Medi-Cal is limited to emergency medical services.
The use of Medi-Cal will not count as a public charge and won't impact your immigration case.
Personal information shared for Medi-Cal coverage is protected from immigration officials under California law.
You can apply for full-scope Medi-Cal online through the Covered California application or by phone.

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1. continued on next page TEACHING, INTERPRETING, & CHANGING LAW SINCE 1979 ILRC.ORG PG. 1 WHAT IS THE MOST RECENT UPDATE REGARDING MEDI-CAL COVERAGE FOR UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS? Starting January 2024, all income-eligible Californians may qualify for full-scope Medi-Cal regardless of immigration status. WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN FULL SCOPE MEDI-CAL AND EMERGENCY MEDI-CAL? Full scope Medi-Cal covers all medical, dental, mental health, vision, and other important services. Full scope Medi-Cal may also cover substance abuse treatment and includes transportation to medical visits. Emergency Medi-Cal is limited and only covers some emergency medical services. WILL ALL UNDOCUMENTED CALIFORNIANS BE ELIGIBLE FOR THIS EXPANSION REGARDLESS OF AGE? Yes, all undocumented Californians will be eligible if they meet the income guidelines for the program. WHAT ARE THE INCOME GUIDELINES NEEDED TO QUALIFY FOR MEDI-CAL? Visit the California Department Of Health Care Services eligibility webpage to review all What the immigrant community needs to know about these changes JANUARY 2024 2024 MEDI-CAL EXPANSION & PUBLIC CHARGE

2. continued on next page continued... TEACHING, INTERPRETING, & CHANGING LAW SINCE 1979 COMMUNITY ALERT ILRC.ORG PG. 2 income guidelines. FAMILY SIZE 138% POVERTY LEVEL 1 $20,121 2 $27,214 3 $34,307 4 $41,400 5 $48,494 WILL USING MEDI-CAL HURT MY IMMIGRATION CASE OR COUNT AS A PUBLIC CHARGE? No. The use of Medi-Cal and other important health, nutrition and housing benefits does not count as a public charge and will not impact your immigration case. WHAT PUBLIC CHARGE RULE IS CURRENTLY IN EFFECT AND WHO DOES IT APPLY TO? The strict public charge rule announced by the Trump administration has been rescinded by the Biden administration. The current rule is similar to the one that was in place before 2017. Public Charge only applies to people applying for a visa to the enter to U.S. or applying for a green card (lawful permanent residence) through a relative. CAN THE PERSONAL INFORMATION I SHARE FOR MY MEDI-CAL COVERAGE BE SHARED WITH IMMIGRATION OFFICIALS? No. There are very strict laws in California that protect immigrants from having their personal information shared with immigration officials. WHERE CAN I SIGN UP FOR FULL SCOPE MEDI-CAL COVERAGE? Online: Using the Covered Caliornia application page (https://www.coveredca. com/apply/) (Covered California and Medi-Cal use the same application).

3. continued... TEACHING, INTERPRETING, & CHANGING LAW SINCE 1979 COMMUNITY ALERT ILRC.ORG PG. 3 Discover more community explainers, toolkits, & alerts about immigration law. FOLLOW US Are you a California Community College (CCC) or a California State University (CSU) student? If so, you qualify for FREE immigration legal services! FIND OUT MORE CCC: findyourally.com CSU: findyourally.com/csu In-person: Find your nearest county office by visiting the California Department of Healthcare Services County Office webpage (https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/ services/medi-cal/Pages/CountyOffices.aspx) By phone: (800) 300-1506 WHERE CAN I FIND A TRUSTED LEGAL SERVICES PROVIDER TO ANSWER SPECIFIC QUESTIONS ABOUT MY IMMIGRATION CASE? Visit ilrc.me/gethelp to find a trusted legal services provider in your area.