'Hospitals are going to close': Johnson insisted he won’t 'touch Medicaid — but now pushes deep cuts

During his 2024 presidential campaign, Donald Trump insisted that cuts to Social Security and Medicaid would be off the table if he won the election. And after Trump started his second presidency, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) echoed that claim —declaring that Republicans were "not going to touch Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid."

But according to The Independent's John Bowden, Johnson is now admitting that cuts to Medicaid are on the table.

In an article published on April 15, Bowden reports, "Despite assurances from a wide range of party figures, including President Donald Trump, it appears as if the upcoming GOP budget proposal will include cuts to Medicaid after all. Speaker Mike Johnson made as much clear on Sunday, (April 13), when he spoke to 'Sunday Morning Futures' host Maria Bartiromo."

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Johnson told Bartiromo, a right-wing host on Fox News and its sister channel Fox Business, "We have to root out fraud, waste and abuse…. Able-bodied workers, for example, young men, who are — who should never be on the program at all."

Bowden explains, "Make no mistake: this is a direct retreat from Johnson's previous position, which as recently as February was 'we're not going to touch Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid'…. The intent seems clear: the Republican House speaker is open to cutting Medicaid benefits in states that expanded the program under the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare. In 2014, the federal government began assisting states with coverage for low-income individuals of all age groups — very much including 'able-bodied workers' and 'young men,' whom Johnson said should not have coverage."

Bowden adds, "Republicans have long opposed benefits to younger, low-income adults and families, arguing that Medicaid and other programs incentivize individuals to avoid work. Activists and experts who supported the Medicaid expansion under the Obama Administration now warn that the program is both extremely popular and part of a key revenue stream for hospitals in lower-income and rural areas."

Dr. Rob Davidson, executive director of the Committee to Protect Health Care, is sounding the alarm about Medicaid cuts.

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Bowden quotes Davidson as saying, "Rural hospitals are going to close…. Our hospital is so dependent on folks' ability to have access to insurance, and Medicaid is a huge payer, you know — about a third or more overall,”

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Read The Independent's full article at this link.