Fewer New Yorkers enroll in NYC Care as immigrants worry their data could reach ICE
About 17,000 fewer people are signed up for the city's health access program for uninsured residents than a year earlier. Officials cite moves to Medicaid and immigrants' fear of ICE.
NYC Care, the city program that connects New Yorkers who cannot get insurance, including undocumented residents, with medical services, is losing members. According to the latest Mayor’s Management Report, 123,124 patients were enrolled in fiscal 2026. That is 12% fewer than the 140,222 signed up a year earlier.
For many immigrants who are shut out of Medicaid and similar government benefits, the program has been the main way to see a doctor. NYC Health + Hospitals runs it, and officials make a point of saying it is not insurance. Members get access to a network of services through the public hospital system.
Why NYC Care enrollment fell
The hospital system gave several reasons. Older members are moving to Medicaid regardless of their immigration status. Medicaid and Child Health Plus have both expanded. And children under 6 now stay on Medicaid without a break.
The annual report also says the agency has heard anecdotally that immigrants are growing more hesitant to give the basic information needed to enroll, because they worry it could be passed to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Immigrant fears and federal health cuts
Councilmember Alexa Avilés, who sits on the Council’s immigration committee, said any drop in health enrollment among vulnerable groups is alarming. She said immigrants have watched the federal government take data from agencies that did not hand it over in the past. “So folks are feeling very vulnerable and potentially targeted.”
Industry experts say federal changes have left many low-income residents, immigrants among them, with no coverage at all. Those changes include tougher work rules for Medicaid and new limits on the state’s Essential Plan. Thomas Farley, a former city health commissioner, said fear of ICE is keeping people in heavily immigrant communities from getting the care they need.
Dr. Chanelle Diaz, a primary care doctor who advocates for immigrant health, said she began seeing fewer undocumented patients soon after Trump was elected in 2024. She said some patients now skip meetings with lawyers who work with doctors on their immigration cases. “They want to stay as invisible as possible in this moment.”
The program was created while Bill de Blasio was mayor, with the goal of guaranteeing care to uninsured residents, undocumented immigrants above all.
Quick answers
What is NYC Care?
A program run by NYC Health + Hospitals that gives uninsured New Yorkers, including undocumented residents, access to a network of medical services. It is not insurance.
How much did NYC Care enrollment drop?
Enrollment fell 12%, to 123,124 patients in fiscal 2026 from 140,222 a year earlier.
Why is NYC Care enrollment down?
The hospital system cites older members moving to Medicaid, the expansion of Medicaid and Child Health Plus, continuous Medicaid for young children, and immigrants' fear that their data could reach ICE.
