����vlog

In Washington, lawmakers are locked in a heated battle over healthcare funding, with Republicans accusing Democrats of causing the government shutdown by demanding taxpayer-funded healthcare for undocumented immigrants. "What they have done instead is shut down the government because we won't give billions of dollars to health care funding for illegal aliens," Vice President JD Vance said to reporters at the White House on Wednesday.And, when asked to clarify whether Democrats truly want to protect healthcare for undocumented immigrants, President Donald Trump's answer was unclear. "Look, we all have big hearts. I have a bigger heart than you do," Trump said in the Oval Office on Tuesday. "We just, as a country, cannot afford to take care of millions of people who have broken the law coming in." It's a central talking point from several Republicans that Democrats have consistently refuted. "Undocumented immigrants do not get federal health insurance premiums, period," Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. "They're lying."According to FactCheck.org, Republicans' claims on undocumented immigrant healthcare are misleading. Under federal law, undocumented immigrants are not eligible for federally funded healthcare, including Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act, which offers government-subsidized private health insurance. But, in Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which passed in July, eligibility for Medicaid and ACA tax credits to certain "lawfully present immigrants" was restricted. Under the government's own definition, a "lawfully present immigrant" can include asylum-holders, refugees or green card holders. In other words, a "lawfully present immigrant" is not what the government defines as an undocumented immigrant.Democrats say they want to reverse the restrictions imposed by President Trump's bill and restore healthcare access to approximately 1.4 million lawfully present immigrants, according to the non-partisan healthcare research organization KFF.So, while the rhetoric may focus on undocumented immigrants, the real issue centers on healthcare access for millions of legally residing immigrants in the U.S.By law, undocumented immigrants are not eligible for Medicaid, but the Emergency Medicaid Program uses Medicaid funding to reimburse hospitals for providing life-saving care to individuals regardless of their insurance status, ability to pay, or immigration status. Additionally, some states, along with Washington D.C., also offer health insurance to undocumented immigrants, but these programs use state funds, not federal money.Watch the latest on the federal government shutdown: