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Donald Trump and other Republicans have said repeatedly that she does. Her history on the issue is complicated.
One of former president Donald J. Trump’s final television ads before Election Day reprises an old talking point.
The segment, released Oct. 17, declares that Vice President Kamala Harris “wants struggling seniors to pay more Social Security taxes while she gives Medicare and Social Security to illegals.”
The first half of the statement is inaccurate. Ms. Harris has not suggested raising Social Security taxes for seniors; instead, she has said she supports eliminating the $168,000 income cap on the taxes workers pay to fund Social Security, a threshold above which income becomes exempt. Under that proposal, Social Security taxes would increase for working people who earn almost three times median annual pay, not for struggling seniors.
The latter half of the ad’s claim — that Ms. Harris supports giving taxpayer-funded health benefits to illegal immigrants — is a misrepresentation of Ms. Harris’s current proposals. Ms. Harris made statements in 2019 that could be understood this way, but she has stepped back from that position in recent months as her health care platform has become clearer.
Mr. Trump has also misstated the Biden administration’s policy. Here is a look at what that is and what Ms. Harris has said about the issue.
What is the current federal policy?
Immigrants who live in the United States illegally do not qualify for federally funded coverage through Medicare, Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program, which provides health coverage for low-income children. In most states, they are also ineligible to buy private health coverage through the Affordable Care Act marketplaces.
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