Medicaid Cuts Top Priority for MAGA Republicans, Putting the Lives of Millions At Risk
Trump is doubling down on his agenda to devastate health care for millions of Americans. For the last 59 years, Medicaid has been a pillar of our public health system, saving lives, keeping hospitals open, and improving the well-being of countless Americans. It covers one in four Americans, including kids, moms, seniors, people of color, rural Americans, and people with disabilities. But Trump and his allies in Congress have vowed to cut Medicaid and other vital programs in order to fund tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans — and they are not skipping a beat to get it done. News coverage makes clear that, if Trump gets his way, coverage would be ripped away from millions and the entire health care system would be thrown into chaos.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
- U.S. Representative Jodey Arrington (R-TX-19), a Republican who leads the House Budget Committee, told reporters last week that he favored a “responsible and reasonable work requirement” for Medicaid, which translates to millions losing their coverage.
- U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX), another Republican from Texas, said of Medicaid, “We ought to look at whether we’re doing it the right way.” He said he supported “block grants,” in which states get lump sums, regardless of how many people sign up for the program. Studies show block grants would slash Medicaid funding and put coverage in jeopardy for millions of people.
- U.S. Representative Brett Guthrie (R-KY-02), one of two leading contenders for Energy and Commerce chair, told Axios he is interested in reviving a proposal from the 2017 Affordable Care Act repeal bill that would cap Medicaid spending on each enrollee, known as a “per capita cap” or allotment. “We offered Medicaid reform in reconciliation in the repeal-and-replace package, and it was per capita allotments, which didn’t cut Medicaid but it does limit the growth,” Guthrie said. “I do think it has to be discussed as part of the package [next year],” Guthrie said, adding that he hadn’t yet discussed the idea with leadership.
HEADLINES
The New York Times: Medicaid May Face Big Cuts and Work Requirements. “Republicans could face political resistance in efforts to cut Medicaid, especially because it has so many enrollees — millions more than Medicare… In 2017, Republicans faced a major backlash for trying to roll back the Obamacare Medicaid expansion… Faced with such a large funding reduction, some states may stop participating in the Medicaid expansion, experts said. A Medicaid work requirement would also target adults who were added in the expansion (although most of them are already working).” [NYT, 11/20/24]
HuffPost: Health Insurance For Millions Is Now Officially At Stake — Again. “… several high-ranking Republicans on Capitol Hill told Politico big cuts to Medicaid should be on the agenda… Philosophically, they believe that downsizing and reshaping these programs is the right thing to do. And as a practical matter, they will be looking for ways to offset at least some of the cost of their proposed tax cuts, which could show up as several trillion dollars worth of lost revenue on the federal government’s ledger… The biggest pot of money in the federal budget goes to the big entitlement programs. And although Trump has pledged to protect Medicare and Social Security, he has made no equivalent guarantees about either the Affordable Care Act or Medicaid.” [HuffPost, 11/20/24]
The Washington Post: Trump Allies Eye Overhauling Medicaid, Food Stamps in Tax Legislation. “House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington (R-Texas) told reporters Wednesday that a “responsible and reasonable work requirement” for Medicaid benefits resembling the one that already exists for food stamps could yield about $100 billion in savings… If Congress balks at lowering Medicaid spending, Republicans may be able to reduce it anyway. While Trump vowed to protect Medicaid as a candidate during his 2016 presidential bid, the first Trump administration allowed 13 GOP-led states to add work requirements to their Medicaid programs, a controversial change that was the focus of legal battles.” [The Washington Post, 11/18/24]
Axios: GOP Weighs Medicaid Overhaul In Reconciliation. “Why it matters: Changes could significantly reshape the safety net program that covers more than 70 million people, saving money but also potentially leading to significant coverage losses. Driving the news: Perhaps the most likely Medicaid change is imposing work requirements on recipients, according to GOP sources.” [Axios, 11/20/24]
The Guardian: Trump Advisers Contemplating Cuts to Medicaid and Other Welfare Programs. “The cuts could mean new work requirements and spending caps… Republicans fear triggering a political backlash by slashing programmes that serve an estimated 70 million Americans to pay for a tax cut that disproportionately benefits the wealthy. The 2017 tax cuts were criticised for being skewed in favour of the rich, with households in the top 1% income bracket receiving a reduction of $60,000 in 2025, compared with less than $500 for those in the bottom 60%, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.” [The Guardian, 11/18/24]
Vox: Trump Proposed Big Medicaid and Food Stamp Cuts. Can He Pass Them? “Trump has promised not to cut Medicare, much as he did in 2016, and while his budgets as president did envision spending reductions, they were mostly minor and came from cutting provider payments rather than limiting eligibility. He did, repeatedly and explicitly, propose cutting Medicaid… Trump waffled on how clear he wanted to be in calling for Medicaid cuts. His 2021 budget was too vague for the CBO to even model… There is not much room to cut Medicaid without reducing access to the program.” [Vox, 11/6/24]