Washington — An analysis by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office that was sent to lawmakers this week showed that budget goals outlined in a House GOP plan could not be reached without reducing spending on Medicaid, clasing with commitments from Republicans not to cut the popular entitlement program.
House Republicans adopted a budget proposal last week that serves as a blueprint for implementing President Trump’s agenda. The resolution must be adopted by the Senate before the chambers can move forward with the budget reconciliation process, a complicated maneuver that allows Congress to bypass the 60-vote threshold typically required in the Senate. But opponents of the resolution have warned that the proposed cuts implicate key programs that Americans rely on, concerns that the CBO analysis backed up.
Republicans want to cut at least $1.5 trillion in spending over a 10-year period to pay for trillions in tax cuts, while increasing funding in some areas. The budget resolution directs congressional committees to craft their own proposals to hit spending targets, increasing or decreasing funding by adjusting programs and policies that fall under their purview.
The Energy and Commerce Committee, which oversees Medicaid, is tasked with finding at least $880 billion in cuts over the next decade. A pair of House Democrats asked the CBO for the projected mandatory spending on programs under the committee’s jurisdiction, excluding Medicare, which offers health coverage for seniors. Medicaid provides government-sponsored health care for low-income Americans, with costs split between the federal government and the states.
CBO found that Medicaid accounts for 93% of all remaining non-Medicare mandatory spending, with $581 billion going to other programs. That means the committee couldn’t meet its $880 billion target without touching the program. GOP leaders have not proposed cutting Medicare, leaving Medicaid as the source of potential cuts.
House Republican leaders have stressed that Medicaid isn’t specifically mentioned in the budget resolution and said benefits would not be cut, noting that last week’s vote was merely to begin the reconciliation process. But Republicans have said they plan to remove “fraud, waste and abuse” within the program, and many members support work requirements that could limit eligibility for benefits. Other GOP lawmakers have expressed concerns about making cuts to the program, since many of their constituents and voters rely on coverage.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said Thursday that the CBO findings “confirmed what we have long understood to be the case with the reckless Republican budget.”
“Republicans are trying to rip healthcare away from tens of millions of Americans,” the New York Democrat said, pledging that “every single Democrat” will stand against the House plan.
