A program to provide health care for pregnant illegal immigrants in Colorado is costing the state over seven times its budget projections since it was enacted, the Colorado Sun reported.
The Covering All Coloradans program, which was enacted in 2022, gave health care benefits to illegal immigrants who would otherwise have qualified for Medicaid, according to the Sun. The program was expected to cost the state $14.7 million, but its cost has instead ballooned to over $104 million.
The program’s launch was secured in 2025 when money was appropriated by the state legislature. The state is now facing a $1 billion budget shortfall, primarily due to programs like Covering All Coloradans, the Sun reported.
The sponsor of the legislation that appropriated the funds, Democratic Colorado State Rep. Shannon Bird, resigned in December 2025 to run for the House seat held by Republican Colorado Rep. Gabe Evans, ColoradoPolitics.com reported.
“One of the primary drivers in total expenditure in this program has been higher than anticipated, and growing enrollment,” the state’s Department of Health Care Policy and Financing told the Sun in a statement.
The state is expecting the program to cost over $127 million in the 2026-2027 fiscal year, the Sun reported.
Democratic Colorado Gov. Jared Polis signed legislation in 2019 that declared Colorado was a “sanctuary state,” prohibiting state and local agencies from cooperating with the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) efforts to detain and deport illegal immigrants. In May 2023, Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott started busing illegal immigrants to Denver to protest illegal immigration.
The United States Attorney for the District of Colorado announced two indictments targeting 30 people tied to the Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua (TdA). The pair of indictments came after a probe that started by investigating activity caught on video at an Aurora apartment complex in August 2025.
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