Medi-Cal insures a third of Californians, including 2.3 million older adults and people with disabilities. Nearly 1.8 million seniors in California, like Hal, are “dual eligible,” meaning they’re insured by both Medicare and Medi-Cal because they are 65 and older, and either low-income or considered medically needy.
But Medi-Cal is facing cutbacks mostly because of the Trump Administration’s H.R. 1 Act (also known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act). H.R. 1 is predicted to cut $30 billion per year in funding to Medi-Cal and introduce stricter eligibility requirements starting in 2027. California has already made a few changes to the program, including limiting the assets enrollees can have and making some immigrants ineligible. While it’s too early to know if the federal cuts will impact Shari and Hal, advocates are concerned that programs like In Home Supportive Services will be on the chopping block, said Tiffany Huyenh-Cho, director of California Medicare & Medicaid advocacy for the nonprofit Justice in Aging.
“California is going to face a $30 billion estimated loss in federal funding,” Huyenh-Cho said. “That’s a lot of money the state will have to balance to account for the loss.”
