Today, it is critical to speak out for Medicaid. Last night, Congressional Republicans released their proposal to cut Medicaid. This proposal, available at this link, will be presented tomorrow afternoon to the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee in Washington, DC.
We have outlined key Medicaid cuts below, and we ask that you use this link to contact your members of Congress to say NO CUTS TO MEDICAID.
What is being proposed? The House Republican leadership have proposed a series of changes that amount to dangerous cuts. The package that was proposed last night includes changes to energy policy, but by far the greatest portion of the $912 billion in cuts would come from Medicaid and cause an estimated 9.6 million people to lose healthcare nationwide. Millions more would pay higher fees for healthcare. There is also grave concern about hospitals closing due to cuts in federal Medicaid spending. The proposal includes the following:
- A work requirement to Medicaid for poor, childless adults, mandating that they prove they are working 80 hours every month to stay enrolled.
- Increased paperwork requirements. States would be able to check the income and residency of beneficiaries every six months, rather than annually. States could terminate coverage for people who do not respond promptly.
- People who have Medicare, but use Medicaid to help pay for some of their care that they cannot afford, would need to shoulder higher costs.
- Medicaid beneficiaries who earn more than the federal poverty limit — around $15,650 for a single person — to pay co-payments of $35 for many medical services.
- Changes to Medicaid provider taxes that will result in lower Medicaid payments to hospitals. With lower payments from Medicaid, hospitals that serve many people on Medicaid face risk of closure.
- States that provide healthcare services to undocumented people face a penalty reduction in federal funding for all childless adults without disabilities. That federal funding would go from 90% to 80%.
- The proposal includes several changes to enrollment for people who buy their own insurance on state health exchanges under the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare).
- The proposal includes other important items that may affect people with disabilities, such as barring coverage of gender-affirming care for transgender minors and ending funding for providers that offer abortion services.
We are making progress, but we are still in the fight. A number of the original proposed cuts to Medicaid have been put aside, such as per capita caps. Plus, the budget reconciliation process is moving slower than planned because YOUR ADVOCACY has caused many members of Congress to request time to better understand the impact of Medicaid cuts on constituents. The longer this takes, the more time we have to ask Congress to change its mind. Keeping up the pressure is important! Again, please take action today at this link. This affects all of us!