Nevada bill expanding Medicaid to undocumented immigrants scaled back

Under proposed amendments provided to The Nevada Independent, the new version of SB419 would focus on providing state-funded health care coverage to pregnant people and children under 17 who don't qualify for Medicaid because of their immigration status. Before being amended, the measure, also known as the Nevada Health Opportunities, Planning, and Expansion (HOPE) Act, intended to expand Medicaid to all income-eligible Nevadans regardless of immigration status, potentially adding tens of thousands of people to the state's state's Medicaid rolls.

Members of the immigrant advocacy group Make the Road Nevada, Clark County Commissioner Tick Segerblom and City Councilwoman Olivia Diaz were expected to join community members on Thursday at Cure 4 The Kids Foundation, a childhood cancer treatment center in Las Vegas, to share their experiences navigating the health care system and describing moments in which insurance coverage would have allowed their sick loved ones to receive the treatment needed.

The ambitious bill, which is being shepherded through the Legislature by Sen. Fabian Donate (D-Las Vegas), was heavily criticized by Republicans for its costs and expected new demand it would present to the state and health care system, but it still passed a first committee vote. It now awaits a hearing in a Senate budget committee.

The newest version of the bill proposes to establish a state-funded coverage program similar to Medicaid, which would cost $13.5 million from Nevada Medicaid and about $732,000 from the Division of Welfare and Supportive Services over the two years of the budget cycle to cover children under 17 years old regardless of immigration or citizenship status.

Tabitha Mueller contributed to this report. This is a developing story and will be updated.

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