Dear Neighbor,
I strongly opposed providing free health care to illegal aliens from the start.
Now, one of my many concerns is coming to light with enrollment in MinnesotaCare for illegal aliens more than doubling initial estimates, sending program costs soaring beyond projections.
You could see this coming a mile away.
Free healthcare for illegals, passed by Democrats in 2023, was originally projected to cost $196 million over four years. With current enrollment, that cost has ballooned to an estimated $550 million and continues to grow. The Minnesota Department of Health shows 17,396 undocumented individuals are now enrolled in the state-funded health insurance program, more than twice the original forecast of 7,700.
These numbers are staggering and deeply concerning on several levels. For starters, Minnesota families are struggling with rising costs but, instead of focusing on core services, Minnesota is spending more than half a billion dollars on a program that was completely misrepresented to the public in terms of what it would cost hardworking taxpayers.
Interestingly, this data was not made public and only surfaced because House Republicans continued pressing for information.
Unlike traditional MinnesotaCare recipients, illegal aliens are not eligible for federal funding support. The federal government typically covers 90 percent of program costs, with the state responsible for the remaining 10 percent. Because this population is ineligible for federal matching funds, Minnesota taxpayers are paying the full boat for illegal aliens’ free health care.
Meanwhile, as free health care for illegals blows a hole in our budget, Minnesota already faces a projected $6 billion budget deficit after reckless spending the last two years. In other words, free health care for illegal aliens could jeopardize other critical services such as ambulance operations, rural hospitals, and emergency care.
How we handle this will say a lot about our priorities – or lack thereof, in some cases. We need to ensure our limited taxpayer dollars are being used to support services for Minnesotans who depend on them every day instead of being funneled to illegal aliens.
Republicans have introduced legislation to repeal the MinnesotaCare expansion for illegal aliens. A full repeal would save taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars over the next four years and reduce incentives for illegal immigration to the state. It would be a step in the right direction and needs to pass.
Protecting girls
Earlier this session, House Democrats undermined safe and fair competition for girls by voting down the Preserving Girls Sports Act (H.F. 12). Polls show around 80 percent of people agree with the bill’s position.
Now, Democrat Attorney General Keith Ellison is erasing any doubt about how out of touch with Minnesotans he is on this issue. This week he sued President Trump to ensure boys can continue playing girls sports in Minnesota.
It’s just the latest example of how Democrats in Minnesota continue catering to the radical extreme instead of doing what the overwhelming majority of people in our state want. A little accountability is long overdue in our state.
Democrats banned your keys
Here’s another shining example of how the Democrat trifecta spent the last two years catering to the extreme radicals while ignoring the vast majority of Minnesotans: A Democrat ban on nearly every new key made or sold in Minnesota is set to take effect on July 1.
For perspective on how outlandish this law is, a recent Alpha News article quotes one auto industry as saying “Our keys are out of compliance here in Minnesota when they're not out of compliance anywhere else, frankly, in the world.”
Republican Rep. Josh Heintzeman has authored a bill (H.F. 1620) that would fix this problem by exempting keys from the new statute that bans them.
It’s ridiculous we even have to waste time fixing this nonsense. We already have our hands full digging Minnesota out of the $6 billion shortfall Democrats caused by spending our state’s $18 billion shortfall and increasing state spending by 40 percent.
Have a good weekend and please stay in touch.
Sincerely,
Shane