X

Leonardo Cuello

is a Research Professor at the Georgetown University McCourt School of Public Policy’s Center for Children and Families.

Email Leonardo

Leonardo Cuello, J.D. is a Research Professor at the Georgetown University McCourt School of Public Policy’s Center for Children and Families (CCF).

Leo has worked on Medicaid law and policy for the past two decades, most recently as the Health Policy Director of the National Health Law Program, where he has been involved in many of the major issues and litigation of recent times — such as work requirements. Leo’s current work focuses on Medicaid and Marketplace waiver authority, Medicaid managed care, payment and delivery system reform, Medicaid expansion, and Medicaid benefit packages.

Before joining the National Health Law Program, Leo worked for the Pennsylvania Health Law Project (PHLP) for six years, focusing on a wide range of healthcare issues dealing with eligibility and access to services in Medicaid and Medicare. At PHLP, Leo ran a project focused on immigrant and Latino health care, including direct representation of low-income immigrants and Latinos, and worked on numerous Medicaid eligibility and services issues through direct representation and policy work. Leo graduated with a B.A. from Swarthmore College and received his J.D. from The University of Pennsylvania Law School.

Leo loves all topics Medicaid and is excited to work on issues like Medicaid system design and managed care, waiver authorities, and addressing health-related social needs. One of his goals is to help develop accessible and actionable educational resources to support advocates, policymakers, and the general public – in both English and Spanish.

Latest

  • Here’s What’s Really at Stake in the Fight for Medicaid Funding

    The raging battle over Medicaid funding is really a fight about the soul of Medicaid and our progress as a society. The broader objective of the House legislation is clear – to reverse decades of progress and take us back to 1965, when health care was welfare, and many people simply were considered undeserving of…

  • Factchecking The White House “Mythbuster” on Medicaid Cuts and Immigrants

    On June 2, 2025, The White House posted a “Mythbuster” fact sheet in defense of the House-passed reconciliation bill. However, the sheet is full of inaccuracies and advances more myths than facts—too many to cover in just one blog. This blog will focus on one prominent false claim, namely that 1.4 million undocumented immigrants will…

  • More Fact Checking on Medicaid Spending for Immigrants

    Last week, a member of the Trump administration repeated a claim that the Administration was “kicking illegal immigrants off Medicaid to protect Medicaid for AMERICANS!” This is consistent with misleading talking points that the House-passed reconciliation bill, now under consideration by the Senate, targets cuts on Medicaid spending to undocumented immigrants. But is any of…

  • House Bill Takes Health Care Away From Immigrants, Including Lawfully Present Children and Pregnant Women

    Misinformation and confusion (even among lawmakers, more on that below) about immigrant eligibility and enrollment in Medicaid and CHIP (Children’s Health Insurance Program) continues to dominate the dialogue about the proposed changes in the House-passed reconciliation bill (see bill text as considered by the Rules Committee, alongside the manager’s amendment that was adopted before final…

  • The Truth About Medicaid Coverage for Immigrants – and the Looming Threats

    There has been a lot of information and misinformation about Medicaid coverage for immigrants circulating in the news, including wildly inaccurate reporting that undocumented immigrants are driving up Medicaid spending—when the truth is that they are NOT even eligible for traditional Medicaid. At the same time, while some Republicans in Congress have said they are…