Trump’s Orwellian “Big Beautiful Bill”

Recently, the House “narrowly passed” a Republican-backed bill that will significantly alter Medicaid and Medicare. Not in a good way. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates cuts of $500 billion from Medicare and $700 billion from Medicaid funding to the states over the next 10 years. People will die as a result of these cuts. Significant changes like the ones proposed will result in the loss of health coverage for 7.6 million Americans over the next decade.

The details on these cuts are unclear. This bill passed by a 215-214 vote without the members reading the bill after an intense all-night debate. All Democrats and two Republicans voted against it. Fred Bentley, managing director of the post-acute and long-term care and senior living practice at ATI Advisory, told Skilled Nursing News:

“Technically, this is lower than some projections of Medicaid cuts, but it’s still a dramatic reduction in federal funding for Medicaid programs. As states figure out how to work with fewer federal dollars over those 10 years, it’s hard to imagine a scenario in which nursing homes avoid Medicaid funding cuts and other negative outcomes.”

CEO and President of LeadingAge, Katie Smith Sloan, dubbed the bill “cold-hearted legislation” with “ugly” consequences.  Smith Sloan said:

“If enacted, the policies in the House-passed bill will have a devastating impact on millions of older adults and their families who rely on Medicaid and Medicare for health care and long-term care and services, and on our nonprofit provider members who serve them.”

LeadingAge, the largest association of nonprofit providers of aging services, is planning to collaborate with senators to oppose the House backed Medicaid
cuts with the “purposeful removal” of at least 10 million people from their health insurance. Sloan warns that these cuts would “shred the health and safety net for older adults and ultimately drive up health care costs.”

Consumer and health care advocates strongly condemn the House-passed legislation, warning that it will harm millions of older adults, people with disabilities, and their families. This bill introduces strict work requirements for adults over 65, policies that effectively function as coverage cuts. Older adults risk losing benefits due to these requirements.

Meanwhile, this bill raises the debt ceiling by $4 trillion and increase the deficit by $3.3 trillion!!!