As Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri argues in a New York Times op-ed, Republicans in Congress are putting forward a reconciliation package that ignores working people and speaks “only for the C suite.” While Hawley calls out Republicans for corporate giveaways, he does not mention that Republicans could opt to eliminate waste and fraud in Medicare Advantage to achieve even more savings than they would get from Medicaid cuts. Targeting waste in Medicare Advantage would both protect health insurance for the working poor, older adults and kids as well as strengthen Medicare.
Medicaid ensures that nearly 80 million Americans with low incomes have access to health care. As Hawley notes, cutting Medicaid to the tune of $715 billion, the Republican plan currently on the table, is both morally wrong and political suicide.
Cutting Medicaid amounts to denying as many as 8.6 million Americans health insurance. What’s more, cutting Medicaid risks forcing rural hospitals to close their doors. Without health care coverage, families lose. Without local hospitals, whole communities lose.
Hawley speaks of the need to limit prescription drug costs, but does not talk about setting drug prices at the same level as other wealthy countries, as President Trump has proposed. Americans pays as much as four times more for our drugs than people in Japan, France and Canada.
Moreover, Hawley does not mention that, instead of cutting Medicaid benefits, Republicans should be directing their attention to eliminating waste and fraud in the Medicare Advantage program. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the federal government is overpaying insurers offering Medicare Advantage plans $1 trillion because the big health insurers game the payment system. Ending this corporate profiteering in Medicare to achieve the savings Republicans seek would strengthen Medicare without doing harm to Medicaid.
President Trump insisted recently that “We are doing absolutely nothing to hurt Medicare, Medicaid or Social Security. Nothing at all.” These proposed Republican Medicaid cuts would cripple state health care systems and destroy Medicaid.
Poll after poll shows that Americans of both parties overwhelmingly support Medicare, Social Security and Medicaid. Understandably. These programs are lifelines for tens of millions of Americans and their families. Working two jobs at minimum wage, let alone one job, is not enough to live a decent life.
As Hawley correctly states, Democrats and Republicans share responsibility for the low minimum wage and few social supports in this country. But, Republicans are poised to make a weak social safety net weaker in order to help pay for tax cuts to America’s wealthy. Rather, they could cut the $1 trillion in waste in Medicare Advantage without hurting anyone and strengthening Medicare.
President Trump appears to have the Republicans in Congress at his beck and call. If he really wants tax cuts for the wealthy as well as to protect Medicaid, he should tell them to change course now! Cut Medicare Advantage waste.
Here’s more from Just Care:
- Trump could easily end high drug costs
- Trump’s executive order on prescription drugs does not reduce drug prices
- Federal cuts to Medicaid will have devastating consequences for older adults and people with disabilities
- Medicare Advantage insurers are killing rural hospitals and communities
- Medicare Advantage doesn’t work for rural Americans
