By Joe Sommerlad
New estimates from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) have revealed that Senate Republicans’ version of Trump’s spending package would lead to more Americans losing health coverage than the version of the president’s flagship legislation that passed the House last month.
The legislation would push 11.8 million Americans off insurance by 2034, according to the report from the nonpartisan CBO.
Over the same period, federal spending on Medicaid, Medicare and Obamacare would be cut by $1.1trn. More than $1trn of the cuts would be made to Medicaid.
The estimates confirm the concerns of some Republicans who are worried about cuts to Medicaid, which amount to the steepest cuts to the federal healthcare program in history.
Some Republicans, worried about the deficit and national debt, have pressed for further cuts, while others fear what deep cuts mean for their constituents.
The estimates also clash with Trump’s promise not to cut Medicaid apart from removing what he describes as fraud and waste.
Here’s Gustaf Kilander’s report on the megabill’s potential impact.
Senate megabill would explode debt and kick 11.8 million off Medicaid, analysis finds