The US House Passed the Medicaid Cuts — But the Fight Continues

Congress is now one step closer to taking health care away from millions of Americans.

Early Thursday morning, the US House of Representatives passed their mega-budget bill — with deep cuts to Medicaid and SNAP program funds — on a vote of 215-214. Every Texas Republican in the House voted for it. Every Democrat opposed it.

We’re alarmed that lawmakers are rushing this shameful bill through Congress. The Medicaid cuts in the bill — $792 billion by the latest count — will result in 7.6 million more Americans going without health insurance. Here at home, we could see 430,000 more uninsured Texans as result of the health care provisions in the bill, particularly the Medicaid cuts, according to one estimate. Texans who are eligible for Medicaid would face new red tape requirements. The bill also prohibits adding or expanding “provider taxes.” Without those new Medicaid dollars, it will be harder for some Texas hospitals to provide key health care services — such as labor and delivery services for pregnant women — as our state population grows. 

The cuts in other states — the Medicaid expansion states — are even worse than the cuts that will hit Texas. Those cuts and restrictions include more frequent hoops to jump through to confirm eligibility, work requirements that push working people off insurance by creating piles of paperwork, and cuts targeting lawful immigrants.

Because so many concerned people around Texas and the United States spoke out against Medicaid cuts over the last several months, the bill does not include the worst proposals that were on the table, such as an across-the-board Medicaid cut. We appreciate everyone who helped with that effort!

The bill also includes $300 million in vicious cuts to SNAP, formerly known as food stamps. Those SNAP cuts will eliminate or reduce food assistance for an estimated 806,000 Texans — including 683,000 Texans in families with kids plus 123,000 Texans age 55–64 without kids in the house. Those grim estimates do not even include the impact of shifting SNAP costs from the federal government to state governments, which will likely lead to additional deep cuts. This legislation will clearly leave more kids, parents, and seniors hungry.

The fight continues. The bill now goes to the US Senate. Senators will likely make changes to the bill, vote on it, and then send it back to the House for another vote.

So keep raising your voice to tell Congress to oppose Medicaid and SNAP cuts that take health care and food away from millions of Americans!