Leavitt Turns Tables on Reporter Over Claim That Illegal Immigrants Don’t Receive Medicaid Funds
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt delivered a pointed rebuttal to a reporter on Friday who claimed that illegal immigrants are not receiving taxpayer-funded healthcare through Medicaid — a claim she swiftly dismantled with hard numbers and legislative facts.
The exchange came amid renewed debate over Democrats’ decision to block a GOP-led continuing resolution earlier this week, effectively prolonging the government shutdown. Democrats have argued their move was tied to preserving certain Affordable Care Act tax credits. But Republicans counter that the real motive was to restore Medicaid coverage for illegal immigrants — a policy the Trump administration has repeatedly condemned.
“Are you denying that Medicaid money has never gone to illegal aliens in the United States of America? … [The Democrats] inserted a provision to undo a provision in the working families tax cut, the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill,’ that ended taxpayer funded healthcare benefits for illegal aliens,” Leavitt said.
Leavitt explained that the Democrats’ counter-proposal would force Medicaid to pay higher rates for illegal immigrants’ healthcare than it does for American citizens who are disabled, elderly, or children. She also noted that the legislation would have revived a California loophole that funneled Medicaid dollars into state programs for illegal immigrants — a scheme that the Trump administration had already closed.
“The Democrats proposal would require Medicaid to pay more to provide care for illegal aliens than Medicaid does for American patients who are disabled, elderly or children. And this bill would’ve also allowed California to continue a gimmick that funds Medicaid for illegals’ programs. Those are the things that we ended.”
Leavitt backed her statement with federal data showing that Medicaid spending for illegal immigrants nearly tripled under the Biden administration, mirroring the unprecedented surge in illegal border crossings — which topped 2 and 3 million encounters per fiscal year.
“And it is an undisputed fact, a fact, that under the Biden administration, illegal aliens were absolutely receiving taxpayer-funded healthcare benefits. In fact, in fiscal year 2024, Medicaid costs for emergency services for illegal immigrants skyrocketed by 142 percent from the previous year to $9.1 billion,” Leavitt continued. “That’s $9.1 billion taxpayer dollars that were going to emergency services for illegals. Between President Trump’s last full fiscal year in his first administration and Joe Biden’s last full fiscal year, Medicaid spending on emergency services for illegal immigrants nearly tripled. There was an increase of 196 percent between 2020 and 2024.”
The press secretary’s remarks align with reports from healthcare providers across Democrat-led states. In Southern California, hospitals have warned they were “bombarded” with illegal immigrants in 2023, forcing American citizens to endure longer wait times. In Denver, Health CEO Donna Lynne reported that 8,000 illegal immigrants made 20,000 healthcare visits in 2023, leaving the city with more than $10 million in unpaid medical services.
“So when an illegal alien goes to the emergency room, who’s paying for it? The American taxpayer,” Leavitt concluded.
The Democrats’ counter-proposal would repeal Title VII, Section B in President Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill,” a key reform designed to restrict Medicaid eligibility for illegal immigrants and reduce fraud, waste, and abuse in federal health programs.
House Speaker Mike Johnson warned that the Democrat-backed measure would cost taxpayers $200 billion, undoing GOP reforms and reopening the very loopholes that allowed blue states to subsidize illegal immigrant care.
Under the Biden administration, states such as California, Illinois, and Minnesota expanded healthcare coverage for illegal immigrants — each suffering massive budget shortfalls as a result. California alone spent $8.5 billion on immigrant healthcare in 2024, while Illinois burned through roughly $800 million annually.