CHICAGO, IL – Today, FWD.us released new polling and a new report, “Cutting Health Care, Supercharging ICE,” detailing how federal budget decisions cut hundreds of billions of dollars from health care, food assistance and other programs while dramatically increasing spending on immigration enforcement are impacting families and communities across Illinois. 

One year ago, Republicans in Congress passed President Trump’s signature budget legislation, cutting $1 trillion from Medicare and Medicaid. Between that bill and the spending bills since, they have funneled a quarter trillion dollars for ICE and the Department of Homeland Security to terrorize communities. The new FWD.us report shows that Illinois is among the states facing the most significant consequences of these decisions, with an estimated $6.4 billion in federal funding projected to be lost by 2029 as a result of changes to Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies, even after offset funds from the Rural Health Transformation Program. 

Among the report’s key findings for Illinois: 

• Over 200,000 fewer Illinoisans are enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP compared with 2025. 
• 106,000 more Illinoisans are projected to become uninsured because of the expiration of enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies. 
• 15 hospitals and medical facilities have closed or are closing, and Illinois is projected to lose 25,800 health care jobs as a result of changes to the ACA and Medicaid, even after the creation of the RHTP.
• The Trump Administration has terminated $17.7 million in Department of Justice grant funding for community safety and violence intervention in Illinois. 
• At the same time, 7,843 immigrants have been arrested across the state since January 20, 2025, and ICE’s “Operation Midway Blitz” terrorized Chicago for months, harming businesses, communities, and families. 

Read the Illinois fact sheet here. 

The new polling commissioned by FWD.us shows voters strongly question these spending priorities. In a July national survey of likely voters, 60 percent said spending hundreds of billions of dollars on immigration enforcement while cutting funding for health care is unacceptable, compared with 28 percent who said immigration enforcement should be funded even if it requires cuts elsewhere.

Todd Schulte, President of FWD.us, said: “Illinois families are facing billions of dollars in lost federal support, reduced access to health care, and tens of thousands of health care jobs at risk. At the same time, $17.7 million in funding for community safety and violence intervention has been eliminated while the federal government dramatically expands immigration enforcement. Illinoisans deserve investments that make their families healthier, safer, and more economically secure.”

Felicity Rose, Vice President of Research and Policy at FWD.us and author of the report, said: “The impact of these federal funding decisions will be felt across Illinois, which is projected to lose $6.4 billion in federal funding and 25,800 health care jobs. More than 200,000 fewer Illinoisans are enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP than a year ago, while nearly 8,000 immigrants have been arrested across the state since January 20, 2025. Illinois faced one of the worst ICE surges in 2025, with businesses, churches, and families all suffering long-term effects. Now the state must cope with worsening cuts to social services to pay for that cruelty and damage.”

The Illinois findings are part of a broader national shift in federal spending priorities. The reconciliation bills directed $113 billion to ICE alone, including funding for nearly 100,000 detention beds, roughly 14,600 additional officers and staff, and expanded deportation operations. It also created a $27 billion fund within the Department of Homeland Security without specific line-item allocations or regular reporting requirements.

Read the full report from FWD.us here.