Around the nation, doctors, lawmakers, advocates and patients are watching anxiously as Republicans in Congress consider proposals to slash billions of dollars from federal Medicaid funding as they look to offset trillions in proposed tax cuts. The specific nature of the funding cuts are still being hammered out. But any reductions to federal Medicaid spending would shift those costs to states.
The additional financial burden could blow billion-dollar holes in state budgets, forcing state lawmakers to slash health benefits or restrict who’s eligible for them. Nearly a fifth of Americans rely on Medicaid, and the percentage is even higher in some states.
“If you have an older adult in your life who has been in a nursing home or received help at home with cooking, bathing, dressing, chances are Medicaid was involved,” said Natalie Kean, director of federal health advocacy for Justice in Aging, an advocacy group focused on addressing poverty among older people.
“Many of us have a connection to the program or will one day,” she said.
