Republican Tax Bill: 11 Million Lose Healthcare? GOP's Absurd Defenses Exposed. Facing criticism for slashing healthcare access for millions of low-income Americans in their tax and spending bill, Republican lawmakers offer shocking justifications. Learn about five absurd defenses used to downplay the devastating impact on poor families while enriching the wealthy
GOP's Cruel Healthcare Cuts: Absurd Defenses Exposed. Republican lawmakers justify slashing healthcare for millions of low-income Americans and families, offering callous arguments like "we all die anyway," while simultaneously enacting massive tax cuts benefiting the wealthy. This article reveals the shockingly insensitive justifications used to defend this deeply unpopular bill
GOP's Big Beautiful Bill: 5 Absurd Defenses of $1.3 Trillion in Cuts to Healthcare and Food Assistance. Republicans' attempts to justify slashing vital federal programs are facing intense scrutiny. Learn about the five most ridiculous arguments used to defend this deeply unpopular bill
Iowa Senator Joni Ernst's insensitive comment on Medicaid cuts sparks outrage. Held at an early, rural Iowa town hall (two hours from Des Moines), her dismissive response to a constituent's concerns about Republican healthcare plans went viral. The Senator's flippant remark, "We all are going to die," ignited criticism and fueled Democratic opposition, impacting her upcoming reelection bid
Iowa Senator Joni Ernst's callous dismissal of concerns over Medicaid cuts – "We all die anyway" – sparks outrage and fuels Democratic opposition. Her dismissive response to a constituent's cry that the GOP tax bill will cause deaths went viral, highlighting the bill's devastating impact on healthcare for millions of low-income Americans and igniting a firestorm of criticism. The controversial remark has energized Democrats and shifted the political landscape ahead of Ernst's reelection bid
Iowa Senator Joni Ernst's callous dismissal of concerns over Medicaid cuts – "Well, we all are going to die" – sparked outrage and fueled criticism of the GOP tax bill. Her dismissive remark, delivered with a smirk, went viral, highlighting the bill's devastating impact on healthcare for millions of low-income Americans. This controversial statement has intensified Democratic opposition and shifted the political landscape ahead of Ernst's reelection bid
Senator Joni Ernst's dismissive comment on Medicaid cuts – "We all die anyway" – sparked immediate outrage. The viral remark fueled Democratic attacks on the GOP tax and spending bill, appearing on protest signs near the U.S. Capitol. This gaffe even prompted a Democratic challenger to enter the race against Ernst, shifting election forecasts slightly in Democrats' favor
Facing backlash for her callous "we're all going to die" comment on Medicaid cuts, Senator Joni Ernst released a sarcastic apology video filmed in a cemetery, further fueling criticism of her stance on the GOP tax bill
Republican efforts to overhaul the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Medicaid expansion will drastically limit eligibility for childless adults without disabilities. This legislation, projected to save hundreds of billions of dollars, imposes stringent "work requirements" resulting in significant coverage losses. Republicans deny these requirements constitute cuts, despite the fact they disproportionately impact working individuals burdened by increased paperwork
Republican Representative Mike Johnson's February claim that losing healthcare coverage motivates self-improvement ignores the devastating impact of the GOP tax bill on millions of low-income Americans. This controversial statement highlights the callous disregard for the consequences of slashing healthcare access
Republican Senator Joni Ernst defends controversial healthcare cuts, asserting that work provides dignity and claiming the bill won't harm Americans. Her statement, following criticism over Medicaid cuts and potential loss of healthcare for millions, sparked outrage and fueled the ongoing debate surrounding the GOP tax and spending plan
Proposed Medicaid work requirements, demanding 80 hours of monthly "community engagement," could slash enrollment by 5.2 million and save $344 billion over 10 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office. This translates to 4.8 million fewer insured Americans by 2034
Republican lawmakers defend Medicaid cuts by citing a study suggesting unemployed recipients spend more time on entertainment (4.2 hours daily vs. 2.7 hours for employed recipients). This argument, used to justify slashing healthcare for millions, equates unemployed individuals with undocumented immigrants, both targeted by the GOP's tax and spending bill
Republican claims of "Medicaid cuts" mask the real issue: preventing the misuse of taxpayer funds by ineligible individuals, including illegal aliens and able-bodied adults. This protects vital resources for those truly in need
Medicaid work requirements fail to increase employment, a 2022 Congressional Budget Office (CBO) analysis reveals. The CBO's findings, examining various federal programs, contradict claims that removing Medicaid benefits from unemployed individuals boosts employment. The analysis cites the unsuccessful 2018 Arkansas Medicaid work requirement pilot program implemented under the Trump administration as evidence
“There, many of the targeted adults lost their health insurance as a result of the work requirement,” the CBO said. “Employment did not appear to increase, although the evidence is scant. Research indicates that many participants were unaware of the work requirement or found it too onerous to demonstrate compliance.”
Rep. Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.), lead author of the Republicans’ Medicaid proposal, has said lawmakers learned from the Arkansas example and that the compliance paperwork in this case would be less onerous.
GOP lawmakers have sought to undermine the Congressional Budget Office, a nonpartisan federal agency that analyzes the fiscal effects of legislation, after it estimated that the massive tax cut package will add $2.4 trillion to the debt over the next 10 years and eliminate health insurance for nearly 11 million people.
Republicans have argued that these tax cuts will spur economic growth and eventually pay for themselves, something that studies have shown did not happen after they made similar arguments about their 2017 tax cut bill. They also have a very vocal critic to contend with in billionaire Elon Musk, their one-time ally who has savaged the bill as an “abomination” for how it will balloon the deficit.
Appearing Thursday on CNN, Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) also dismissed the CBO’s projections about the nearly 11 million people who stand to lose their health care coverage.
“Can you say for certain no one will lose their health insurance?” CNN anchor Pamela Brown asked Scott.
“You just can’t look at those numbers at face value and say they’re going to happen,” Scott responded.
Republicans who are willing to at least acknowledge that cutting Medicaid will lead to people losing health insurance argue that they will instead be able to find a job and receive employer-sponsored health care.
“People are screaming and saying, ‘Hey, it’s kicking people off Medicaid.’ It’s not kicking people off Medicaid,” Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) said in an interview with CNBC. “It’s transitioning from Medicaid to employer-provided health care. So, yes, we’ve got 10 million people that are not gonna be on Medicaid, but they then are gonna be on employer-provided health care.”
That’s an extremely optimistic prediction, especially since the GOP bill doesn’t explicitly create any jobs itself. Even if those people who lose their Medicaid coverage are able to find a job at some point, not every employer offers health care, particularly for part-time roles.
“Few of those disenrolled from Medicaid because of the policy would have access to and enroll in employment-based coverage and none would be eligible for the premium tax credit,” CBO Director Phillip Swagel said in a letter to members of Congress on Wednesday.
Dr. Mehmet Oz, the former TV personality now running the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said people should have to “prove that you matter” to get Medicaid coverage.
During a Wednesday interview on Fox Business, Oz defended the bill’s harsh, new work requirements for Medicaid. The bill requires states to deny coverage to people age 19 to 64 applying for Medicaid if they’re not already working at least 80 hours a month. It also requires states to kick people off Medicaid if they can’t prove they’re meeting the work requirements. The Congressional Budget Office estimates these work requirements alone will result in 5.2 million people losing their health coverage.
“We’re asking that able-bodied individuals who are able to go back to work at least try to get a job or volunteer or take care of a loved one who needs help or go back into school,” Oz said. “Do something that shows you have agency over your future.”
If people aren’t doing those things, he said, they’ll have to get a job and get health insurance there because they shouldn’t be covered by Medicaid anymore.
For two decades, HuffPost has been fearless, unflinching, and relentless in pursuit of the truth. Support our mission to keep us around for the next 20 — we can’t do this without you.
We remain committed to providing you with the unflinching, fact-based journalism everyone deserves.
Thank you again for your support along the way. We’re truly grateful for readers like you! Your initial support helped get us here and bolstered our newsroom, which kept us strong during uncertain times. Now as we continue, we need your help more than ever. We hope you will join us once again.
We remain committed to providing you with the unflinching, fact-based journalism everyone deserves.
Thank you again for your support along the way. We’re truly grateful for readers like you! Your initial support helped get us here and bolstered our newsroom, which kept us strong during uncertain times. Now as we continue, we need your help more than ever. We hope you will join us once again.
Already contributed? Log in to hide these messages.
For two decades, HuffPost has been fearless, unflinching, and relentless in pursuit of the truth. Support our mission to keep us around for the next 20 — we can’t do this without you.
Already contributed? Log in to hide these messages.
“Go out there. Do entry-level jobs. Get into the workforce. Prove that you matter,” Oz said. “Get agency into your own life.”
In fact, under the GOP bill, most people are projected to lose Medicaid coverage due to red tape, with states not automatically exempting certain people from work requirements who should be exempted. At least 2 in 3 enrollees would be kicked off Medicaid despite working or qualifying for an exemption, like having a disability or going to school, per the nonpartisan Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
Source: Original Article