Health Coverage for Undocumented Immigrants in New York City: What You Can Get, Program by Program

What can an undocumented immigrant get in New York City?

The answer depends on your age, whether you are pregnant and whether the person who needs care is a child. Status closes three doors for most adults: full Medicaid, the Essential Plan and plans sold on NY State of Health. Every other door on this page stays open.

The rows in bold are the ones people skip because they assume the answer is no. The most expensive mistake on this list is a parent who does not apply for a child because the parent is undocumented: the child’s application is about the child.

Emergency Medicaid: what it pays for adults 19 to 64

Emergency Medicaid is the main coverage an undocumented adult under 65 can get. NY Health Access, the Legal Aid reference service, describes it as federally required coverage for the treatment of an emergency medical condition, for immigrants who do not meet the full Medicaid immigration rules. You must live in New York State and meet the Medicaid income rules.

Approval gives you 12 months of emergency-only coverage, plus up to 3 months back if you ask for retroactive coverage. Organ transplants are excluded, and so is nursing home care. Routine checkups and follow-up visits are not emergencies, so they are not covered either; that is the gap NYC Care fills.

One 2026 change to watch: under a state directive (GIS 26 MA/04), people under 65 who have had Emergency Medicaid for at least six months and used no services in the last six months are disenrolled. You can apply again when you need care. Emergency Medicaid in full: what counts, how to apply.

Undocumented and 65 or older: full Medicaid

Since January 1, 2024, undocumented New Yorkers aged 65 and older can get full Medicaid, not only the emergency version, according to NY Health Access. That means doctor visits, prescriptions and hospital care through a Medicaid managed care plan, under the same financial rules that apply to any New Yorker 65 and older.

This is the least known row in the table, and the one most worth acting on for a grandparent who has gone years without a regular doctor. Apply through the city’s Medicaid office (HRA) rather than NY State of Health, because applications for people 65 and older run through the local district. Medicaid at 65 and older in New York.

The honest limit: nursing home care for someone in this group raises immigration questions that a regular doctor’s visit does not. NY Health Access flags public charge as a concern for people 65 and older who need nursing home care. Before applying for long-term care, talk to a free immigration attorney.

Pregnant, babies and children: status does not decide

Pregnancy. The city’s Office of Citywide Health Insurance Access says pregnant New Yorkers can get Medicaid regardless of immigration status and at higher income levels than other adults. This is full pregnancy coverage: prenatal visits, delivery and care after the birth, not the emergency-only version. Coverage during pregnancy.

The baby. The same city page says that if you have Medicaid while pregnant, your infant has Medicaid for one year regardless of your income. A baby born in the United States is a citizen and qualifies on its own facts after that. Newborn and postpartum coverage.

Children. “All New York children can get Child Health Plus, regardless of immigration status or income,” the city says. Whether you pay a monthly premium depends on family income, and the plan tells you before enrollment. Child Health Plus.

What to say on the phone:

“I am applying for my child only. I am not applying for myself, and I would like to know which program my child qualifies for.”

NYC Care: a doctor without insurance

NYC Care is not insurance. It is a city program run through NYC Health + Hospitals for people who “do not qualify for insurance, or are unable to afford insurance,” in the program’s own words. For an undocumented adult under 65, it is the closest thing to a regular plan.

At renewal, a financial counselor screens you for insurance, which is how a change in your situation, such as a pregnancy or turning 65, gets caught. Everything NYC Care covers and how to enroll. If you are deciding between the two, NYC Care against Medicaid sets them side by side.

A hospital bill: financial assistance ignores status

If you already have a bill, the program to use is New York’s hospital financial assistance law, which binds every hospital in the state. The Attorney General’s office says hospitals cannot consider immigration status, that applying does not count as a public benefit and does not affect your status, and that hospitals cannot report applicants to ICE.

For a family of four, 400% of the poverty level is about $132,000 a year in 2026, per the Attorney General. You can apply at any time, including after the bill goes to collections, and the hospital must decide in writing within 30 days. Free help with the form: Community Health Advocates, 888-614-5400. How to apply, step by step.

Clinics, dental care and the emergency room

Community health centers. Federally funded health centers charge what you can afford based on your income, according to the National Institutes of Health’s dental research institute. Ask the center which services it offers on site before you book, because dental and mental health care are not available at every location. What a federally qualified health center is.

Dental. Emergency Medicaid does not cover routine dental care. A community health center or a dental school clinic is the realistic route. Low-cost dental care in NYC.

The emergency room. Any hospital with an emergency department must screen and stabilize you regardless of status or ability to pay. Being treated and having the bill paid are separate questions: ask for an Emergency Medicaid screening and a financial assistance application before you leave. Your rights in the ER.

Are you undocumented for these programs?

New York’s programs use their own categories, and many people who describe themselves as undocumented are not in that category. People with DACA, Temporary Protected Status, a pending asylum case, a pending green card application or another document from immigration authorities can fall into groups New York covers more broadly, though federal changes in 2026 and 2027 moved some of those lines. What changed for lawfully present immigrants in 2026 and 2027.

So the order of operations is: