JACKSON, MS – 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 Mississippi. 

One year ago, Republicans in Congress passed President Trump’s signature budget legislation, cutting nearly $1 trillion from healthcare. 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 Mississippi is among the states facing significant consequences of these decisions, with an estimated $1.2 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 (RHTP). 

Among the report’s key findings for Mississippi: 

• 145,000 more Mississippians are projected to become uninsured because of the expiration of enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies. 
• Over 16,500 fewer Mississippians are enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP compared with 2025. 
• Three hospitals and medical facilities have closed or are closing, and Mississippi is projected to lose 4,500 health care jobs as a result of changes to the ACA and Medicaid, even after factoring in RHTP funds.
• At the same time, the state had six ICE detention facilities as of July, holding an average of 2,262 people each day, and 4,890 immigrants have been arrested across the state since January 20, 2025. 

Read the Mississippi 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.

Greenville Mayor Errick Simmons said: “For rural communities like Greenville, access to a strong local hospital is essential. When hospitals lose funding, families can face fewer services, longer drives for care, and generally less access to healthcare in their communities. Mississippians in the Delta know this cost firsthand. At a time when Mississippi’s healthcare system is already under strain, we should be investing in keeping hospitals open and protecting access to care, rather than pouring billions of dollars into expanded immigration enforcement. Mississippi families deserve investments that keep our communities healthy and strong.”

 State Senator Rod Hickman (D-32) said:  “Mississippi already faces serious challenges when it comes to access to health care and economic opportunity, and these federal funding cuts threaten to make those challenges even worse for Mississippi families. Families should not have to worry about losing health coverage or struggling to put food on the table while the federal government directs unprecedented funding to immigration enforcement. Our priority should be policies that strengthen families, protect access to care, and help communities across Mississippi build a stronger future.”

Todd Schulte, President of FWD.us, said: “Mississippi families are facing growing threats to their access to health care and food assistance, with hospitals closing and thousands of health care jobs at risk. At the same time, funding for community safety and violence intervention has been eliminated while the federal government dramatically expands immigration detention and enforcement. Mississippians deserve investments that help families stay healthy, put food on the table, and build safer communities.”

Felicity Rose, Vice President of Research and Policy at FWD.us and author of the report, said: “Mississippi is projected to lose $1.2 billion in federal funding, with 145,000 more people projected to become uninsured and thousands of health care jobs at risk. At the same time, more than 2,200 people are held in ICE detention facilities across the state on an average day. And with many of the most significant Medicaid and SNAP cuts still to come, Mississippi families could face even greater consequences in the years ahead.”

The Mississippi 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. They 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.