President Donald Trump went to Capitol Hill on Tuesday to talk to congressional Republicans about the reconciliation bill that will serve as a vehicle for tax cut legislation and urged them to avoid making cuts to Medicaid.
Potential changes to Medicaid have been discussed as part of the process of drafting the tax cut package to help offset the lost revenue with spending deductions. Among the reforms in the proposal are stronger work requirements for Medicaid enrollees.
While some conservatives are arguing for deeper reforms to Medicaid, the White House has been reluctant to accede to those requests as Democrats have cited reports that millions of Medicaid enrollees could lose coverage as they look to rally opposition to the bill.
“Here’s what I want on Medicaid. We’re not touching anything,” Trump told reporters at the Capitol on Tuesday. “All I want is one thing. Three words. We don’t want any waste, fraud or abuse. Very simple — waste, fraud, abuse.”
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“Other than that, we’re leaving it. Medicare, we’re leaving it. All we’re after, and this is for the good of it, a lot of waste, fraud and abuse. That’s all we’re doing. We’re not touching it. The Democrats are going to destroy it,” the president added.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee, which drafted the Medicaid-related provisions of the bill that the House is considering, said on Tuesday that Congress’ nonpartisan budget watchdog found most of the spending reductions were due to eligibility changes.
“According to the Congressional Budget Office, the coverage loss from Medicaid enrollees under the bill come from removing illegal immigrants, able-bodied adults choosing not to work, and individuals who are not actually eligible for Medicaid,” the committee said.
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Within the CBO’s analysis, it identifies Medicaid-related spending reductions amounting to $792 billion over the 2025-2034 period.
Last week, the panel unveiled details of the proposed work requirement, which would mandate that certain able-bodied adults receiving Medicaid between the ages of 19 and 64 work 80 hours per month to maintain their eligibility.
The committee’s provisions would also put guardrails on states spending funds to expand their Medicaid populations. Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), states were permitted to expand eligibility for Medicaid to include adults making up to 138% of the poverty level.
Fox News Digital’s Liz Elkind contributed to this report.
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