1. United States
2. Calif.
3. Letter

Please vote YES on SB 1422, the Medi-Cal Access Restoration Act. The 2025-26 State Budget froze Medi-Cal enrollment for undocumented adults, leaving otherwise-eligible Californians without access to routine and preventive care. The freeze does not eliminate health needs - it shifts costs to counties, hospitals, and emergency rooms, and denies dignity and care to our neighbors. Undocumented Californians contribute $8.5 billion annually in state and local taxes and make up roughly one-tenth of the state's workforce - yet the freeze bars many of them from the safety-net programs their tax dollars support. Research shows that access to preventive care significantly reduces avoidable emergency room visits, which can cost more than ten times as much as routine care. California already spends an estimated $3.5 billion annually on preventable emergency care. The freeze also compounds pressure on a health system already strained by federal cuts under H.R. 1, which is projected to result in up to $83 billion in uncompensated hospital costs over the next decade. Freezing undocumented adults out of Medi-Cal was not only wrong, it was a huge setback in the progress we’ve made toward achieving universal health care in our state. Please support the passage of this legislation.