The Heat's On: Republicans Seeking to Slash Health Care for Tax Cuts
Republicans seek to deprive millions of individuals of their health coverage
The GOP is cooking up something hot in the U.S. Congress - a plan to extend the President Trump's first-term tax cuts, which they intend to fund, in part, by taking a knife to the American health care system.
Republicans in the House of Representatives have come up with a recipe that includes deep cuts to health care as an ingredient for the tax cuts pie. Over a decade, they aim to save approximately $880 billion from Medicaid, according to AP. Medicaid, a government program that offers health insurance to individuals with low incomes, currently offers the benefit to around 70 million Americans.
These savings are part of a larger budget package that Trump and his posse want to ram through Congress. It also includes tax relief totaling $4.5 trillion over several years. "Savings like these enable us to renew the Trump tax cuts with this bill and keep the Republican promise to middle-class families," said Republican Representative Brett Guthrie. The tax cuts enacted during Trump's first term are only short-term and expire at the end of next year.
Democrats, on the other hand, are sounding alarms about the potential social chaos these cuts could stir up. "The House Republican budget will result in millions of Americans losing their health insurance," wrote Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. According to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, as many as 8.6 million people could lose their Medicaid coverage as a result. To qualify for Medicaid in the future, able-bodied adults without children would have to provide proof that they are working at least 80 hours a month, pursuing further education, or offering certain services.
Republicans at Odds
The bill would also make Medicaid recipients with higher incomes pay larger co-payments for doctor visits, according to the New York Times. Normally, Medicaid demands very little cost-sharing from its beneficiaries due to their low income. The legislation would impose co-payments of $35 for many medical services.
Initially, even more extreme cuts to the program were under consideration, but nearly a dozen Republican lawmakers objected, putting the Republican majority in the congressional chamber in grave danger. At the same time, fiscal hardliners in the party threaten to scuttle the bill unless there is enough offsetting revenue for the tax cuts. Now, the Republican leadership seems to be opting for a middle ground to satisfy both factions within the party.
Insights:
- Provider Taxes: The proposal would also offer a moratorium on new taxes on healthcare providers, helping states secure more federal funds.
- Work Requirements: Besides cutting costs and imposing co-payments, the plan includes work requirements for Medicaid beneficiaries.
[2]: "New York Times"
- The community policy under discussion is the budget package proposed by Trump and the Republicans, which includes deep cuts to Medicaid as a strategy to fund tax cuts, with the intention of saving approximately $880 billion over a decade.
- The employment policy within this proposal includes work requirements for Medicaid beneficiaries, where able-bodied adults without children would need to provide proof of working at least 80 hours a month, pursuing further education, or offering certain services in order to qualify for Medicaid in the future.
- The employment policy also involves higher co-payments for doctor visits for Medicaid recipients with higher incomes, with co-payments of $35 for many medical services proposed in the legislation, which is a significant departure from the minimal cost-sharing typically expected due to their low income. Additionally, this policy includes a moratorium on new taxes on healthcare providers, aiming to secure more federal funds for states.
