When you can't see about your own family because you're busy seeing about someone else's family. California has welcomed the new year by becoming the first state to offer free health insurance to all low-income immigrants living in the state illegally.

The final expansion going into effect Jan. 1 will make approximately 700,000 undocumented residents between ages 26 and 49 eligible for full coverage. The California Health and Human Services Agency has committed $835.6 million in 2023-24 and $2.6 billion annually thereafter to expand full-scope Medi-Cal eligibility to all income-eligible adults, regardless of immigration status.