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It's extremely well-paying work by Mexican standards.

BUT THIS ISN'T MEXICO! Seriously, how many of them do you think are expecting the cost of living to be as high as it is when they get here?

I doub't you'd do much better than they, if you were without insurance. The cost of government services to illegals is, indeed, a serious issue. But that's not the fault of the illegals who use the services, but rather the Americans (in state and local government) who make money available for that purpose.

Bull. My parents didn't have insurance when I was born, but they paid in cash because they waited to have children until they'd saved up enough. It's called personal responsibility.

Further, I don't hold the government completely blameless for making the services available, but somehow, the illegals need to realize that they need to get off the teat and either get documented so they can advance themselves without government help or come here legally to begin with so that they can make decent enough money rather than under-the-table, cut-rate wages with no employer benefits.

Bull. My parents didn't have insurance when I was born, but they paid in cash because they waited to have children until they'd saved up enough. It's called personal responsibility.

HR, it's just not the same way anymore. If you show up at the doctor's office without insurance, it costs over a hundred bucks just for a checkup. If you need stitches, it costs a few hundred bucks. If you need an asthma inhaler, it can cost 125 bucks for a single inhaler. I seriously doubt that you could afford a hospital visit for something that you didn't have time to save up for in advance (say, a heart attack). I know I couldn't.

Further, I don't hold the government completely blameless for making the services available, but somehow, the illegals need to realize that they need to get off the teat

Seriously: if Americans are willing to continue giving it away for free, why should illegals stop taking it? If it's a choice between free care or "no care because I can't afford it," I know which one most folks are going to take.

and either get documented so they can advance themselves without government help or come here legally to begin with so that they can make decent enough money rather than under-the-table, cut-rate wages with no employer benefits.

I very strongly agree. The question is: how do you address the American side of this? Americans are the ones out there dangling under-the-table, cut-rate, no-benefits wages. That's what's driving these folks to come across illegally, rather than waiting years for the necessary documentation.