Carpinteria Non-Profit Sees Sharp Drop in Medi-Cal Enrollment as Deportation Fears Rise

CARPINTERIA, Calif.—The mental health toll that comes with the fear of deportation is something that Teresa Alvarez is all too familiar with.

“It took me a really long time to be able to even process what was happening and even realizing that there was a lot of fear in my family,” said Carpinteria Children’s Project Executive Director Teresa Alvarez.

Working at the Carpinteria Children’s Project has come full circle for Alvarez, who helps connect local families with free resources including food and rent assistance, childcare, legal aid, and healthcare.

Right now, families are on high alert as Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers have been spotted in the area.

As the need for mental health resources has increased dramatically, Alvarez says enrollment in Medi-Cal and Cal Fresh has sharply declined.

“As of January 20th, we saw a lot of people calling in and saying, ‘I’m not going to come in to my appointment,’ or ‘I’m actually very afraid. I don't want to give my information,’” said Alvarez.

Alvarez says that the average of 50-60 people coming in monthly dropped to 8 in the month of January, and this could have some serious long term implications. 

“If they're able to get preventative care, then they don't end up in the emergency room with astronomical bills right from the hospital. And so it just supports everybody.”

Even though there's a lot of fear and uncertainty within the undocumented community. The leaders of the Carpinteria Children's Project say there's a lot people can do to feel empowered again.”

“Not speaking and, you know, and not sharing information and asking for those warrants and making sure that they're assigned. The red cards have information for the families on what they should exercise is what their rights are and in the back and actual script,” said Director of Family Services Jessica Ramirez.

The Governor's budget estimates a decline in Medi-Cal caseload by around 1 million enrollees in 2024-2025 compared to the previous year due to the unwinding of continuous enrollment provisions related to the pandemic.