Virginia is among the states suffering the most from federal cuts to healthcare spending and a new report found the money is mostly funneled to immigration enforcement.
At the same time, ICE agents have arrested more than 15,000 people in the state since the beginning of 2025.
Felicity Rose, vice president of policy and research for the advocacy organization FWD.us, said those being targeted are valued community members who live and work in the Old Dominion.
“Who have families, many of whom are citizens, who have been doing caretaking jobs in many cases, or working on farms,” Rose explained. “Those effects ripple through the whole economy.”
According to the report “Cutting Health Care, Supercharging ICE,” Virginia has lost a projected $3.5 billion in federal funding dollars for the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid and SNAP. More than 50,000 people have lost healthcare coverage as a result.
Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security continues to open its wallet to buy up large warehouses across the country to house detained people before deportation. Rose contended Virginia’s rural hospitals are desperately in need of funding, noting the latest data show 19 facilities have closed or are on the verge of closing.
“When those close down, there’s not really any other option, so people end up having to travel further for their healthcare, and that can be deadly depending on how far they have to go,” Rose emphasized.
Despite the administration’s claims its funding priorities will increase public safety, Rose believes there is little evidence ICE enforcement reduces crime.
“The administration has also cut $4 million in substance abuse and mental health funding in Virginia and that’s funding that we know actually does help people, it does help protect public safety,” Rose underscored.
Terminated federal grant funding for Virginia’s substance use and mental health programs has so far totaled more than $4 million.
