About 9,000 Non-Citizens in Rhode Island Lose Medicaid Coverage on Oct. 1 Under New Federal Rules
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Starting October 1, 2026, about 9,000 non-U.S. citizens in Rhode Island will lose Medicaid coverage under new federal eligibility rules in the budget law passed in July 2025. Many lawfully present immigrants who previously qualified — including some refugees, asylees without green cards and holders of certain visa statuses — will no longer be eligible for federally funded Medicaid. Undocumented immigrants were already ineligible.
Erin Fuse Brown, a professor of health policy at the Brown University School of Public Health, noted those affected are non-citizens who were previously eligible for Medicaid, including refugees, asylees and victims of domestic abuse or trafficking. The state Executive Office of Health and Human Services posted guidance in August clarifying who remains eligible after Oct. 1: children under 19, pregnant and postpartum people, green card holders who meet or are exempt from the five-year wait, Cuban/Haitian entrants, and citizens of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and Palau.
Local health care professionals expect even more Rhode Islanders to lose Medicaid next year because of new work requirements, and safety-net providers are assessing whether they can absorb tens of thousands of newly uninsured people.
The state advises affected residents to explore alternative coverage options through the "Stay Covered RI" website.
(According to Ocean State Media and The Providence Journal.)
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: CC BY-SA 4.0（Wikimedia Commons，摄影：Kenneth Kzirkel）
