Texas hospitals were hit with more than $1 billion in health care costs racked up by illegal immigrants during fiscal year 2025, the first year the state began tracking the figures.
The data, compiled by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) and obtained by Texas Scorecard, shows hospitals logged 313,742 visits linked to individuals not legally present, with total costs reaching $1.05 billion by the end of the fiscal year.
Texas’ fiscal year runs from Sept. 1 through Aug. 31, but hospitals were only required to begin reporting in November.
Based on the reported data, costs averaged about $105 million per month, meaning the true annual total could be significantly higher.
To put the figures into perspective, the reported hospital costs approach about 1% of the state’s tax-funded resources.
The figures were collected under an executive order signed by Gov. Greg Abbott in August 2024 that mandated the agency track the number of “individuals not lawfully present” in the U.S. who use Texas public hospitals.
Abbott’s executive order directed Texas hospitals to provide HHSC with quarterly breakdowns on patients not lawfully present in the U.S., including the number of inpatient discharges, emergency department visits and the cost of care provided to these patients.
Texas, a border state, reported some of the highest crossing numbers ever recorded under the Biden administration, putting immense pressure on its health care system, Andrew Mahaleris, Abbott’s press secretary, told Fox News Digital previously. --->READ MORE HERE
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| Image by Jonathan WeissShutterstock |
Texas hospitals incurred more than $1 billion in health care costs for patients not lawfully present in the United States during fiscal year 2025, according to new data obtained from the Texas Health and Human Services Commission.
The figures were collected under an executive order issued by Gov. Greg Abbott in August 2024, which requires hospitals to report the cost of inpatient and emergency care provided to individuals in the country illegally. Under Abbott’s order, hospitals are also required to inform patients that responses regarding immigration status will not affect their care, as required by federal law.
Statewide totals show 313,742 hospital visits from patients not legally present in the U.S., costing hospitals $1.05 billion during the reporting period. The largest share of the expense—more than $565 million—came from inpatient discharges for non-Medicaid and non-CHIP patients.
Emergency department visits accounted for roughly $230 million, while total inpatient care exceeded $820 million, underscoring that long-term hospitalizations, not emergency treatment alone, are driving much of the cost.
Although hospitals are required under federal law to deliver the care, unpaid medical costs are ultimately passed along to Texans. Taxpayers absorb the burden through higher insurance rates, public hospital funding, and state health programs. --->READ MORE HERE
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