House GOP advances Medicaid cuts after 26-hour markup
After a grueling overnight markup session, the House Energy & Commerce Committee voted along party lines to advance the portion of the GOP reconciliation bill enacting deep cuts into Medicaid even as the push further divides Republicans.
The committee voted 30-24 to advance the bill. It now heads to the House Budget Committee, which will meet Friday morning to combine it with legislation from other panel advancing Trump’s priorities — namely the extension of tax cuts and new tax breaks for tips and overtime pay.
What’s included:
The GOP plan calls for states to impose work requirements on childless adults ages 19 to 64, with certain exemptions.
It puts a stop to a longstanding practice of states levying taxes on health providers to pay for their Medicaid programs and to boost their federal match.
The plan would penalize states that pay for Medicaid for individuals who entered the country without authorization.
It also codifies changes proposed by the Trump administration to shorten the Affordable Care Act’s open enrollment period, among many other provisions.
Though this plan is projected to exceed the $880 billion in savings the committee was tasked with finding, several Republicans on the Hill are staunchly refusing to support any cuts to Medicaid while others think they don’t go far enough.
Sen. Josh Hawley (Mo.) has become the most prominent Republican to oppose the Medicaid cuts, publishing an op-ed this week declaring the plan “both morally wrong and politically suicidal.”
Yet others say the reductions are too restrained.
Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.), the chair of the House Freedom Caucus, argued scheduling the work requirements to go into effect in 2029 is too late.
“It’s ridiculous. Nobody works that way,” Harris said.
“In my opinion they don’t go far enough,” added Rep. Eric Burlison (R-Mo.), a member of the Freedom Caucus who does not support the package.
“At the end of the day, we have a $2 trillion deficit and the fact that we’re — we’re shuffling the chairs on the top of the Titanic here,” he added. “So we’ve got to do more.”
Welcome to The Hill’s Health Care newsletter, we’re Nathaniel Weixel, Joseph Choi and Alejandra O’Connell-Domenech — every week we follow the latest moves on how Washington impacts your health.
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