‘Life-Saving Programs... Are Being Dismantled’: Mike Thompson Condemns Proposed Medicaid Cuts

14 hours ago

During a House Ways and Means Committee hearing prior to the congressional recess, Rep. Mike Thompson (D-CA) discussed his concerns over potential cuts to Medicaid.

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Transcript

00:00Mr. Thompson, you're recognized. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you for calling

00:04today's hearing, and I want to thank the witnesses for being here today. Although

00:09I think it's ironic that we're holding a hearing today on long-term care

00:14facilities while the House Republicans are in the process of cutting $880

00:19billion from Medicaid. 63% of all long-term care patients rely on Medicaid

00:27coverage to pay for their care. These cuts to Medicaid will hurt 26 long-term

00:33care facilities in my district, which provides services for 8,000 patients,

00:40half of whom rely on Medicaid. And it's not just patients who will suffer from

00:46these cuts. Long-term care facilities support 8,500 jobs, pay $548

00:53million in salary, and contribute $183 million in federal and state taxes.

01:00As soon as the Republican budget was announced, I met with health care

01:05professionals in each of the five counties that I represent. What they

01:10told me should concern everyone on this dais and every American. They said that

01:15the Medicaid cuts in the Republican budget would hurt people on Medicaid and

01:20also veterans, people on Medicare, and people with private insurance. These

01:26drastic Medicaid cuts will mean 54,000 fewer people will be covered by Medicaid

01:32or CHIP, also known as the Children's Health Initiative Program in California.

01:38Rural hospital closures will lead to longer drive times and more preventable

01:45deaths in emergency cases. The large hospitals that are able to stay open

01:51will cut specialists, leading to fewer local treatment options for

01:57Medicaid recipients, as well as people with private insurance. I also heard that

02:02larger systems will pull back on support for long-term assistance and

02:08programs to help keep people in their homes. Without Medicaid-funded equipment,

02:14some people with disabilities will be unable to get out of bed and go to work.

02:19Some will not be able to stay in their homes, which will mean a higher cost to

02:24taxpayers. These Republican Medicaid cuts would cause a $2 billion reduction in

02:31economic activity in my district alone. That hurts Main Street. Mr. Chairman, I

02:37know that members on this dais will object and say that Medicaid and

02:41Medicare and Social Security aren't mentioned once in the Republican budget,

02:46but as you know, you can't cut $880 billion without touching those programs.

02:53And along those lines, I'd like unanimous consent to enter into the record this

02:58news article where where Mr. Musk is talking about going after and cutting

03:05Social Security. And these are all life-saving programs, and they're being

03:12dismantled. The health and the economic impacts are going to be felt in every

03:17congressional district and by every American. Can I get you? Yeah, without

03:22objection. Thank you. Mr. Carlson, please expand on how Medicaid cuts in the

03:28Republican budget would impact people who are on Medicare, private coverage, or

03:33are veterans who use the private health care system. Thank you. The important

03:41thing to note is that Medicare is not comprehensive. I'd like to focus on that,

03:46that it doesn't cover long-term long-term services and supports on a

03:51long-term basis. There's some nursing facility coverage, but it's mentioned

03:56only after a hospitalization of at least three nights and only for a particularly

04:00intensive level of nursing care. So, Medicare doesn't cover these long-term

04:05services and supports that people need, either in a nursing facility or

04:08particularly, as you note, in for at-home care. It's worth noting that at-home care

04:15is particularly at risk from the cuts are proposed. These home and community

04:20based services are not mandatory under Medicaid. They're optional programs, and

04:26so they're particularly vulnerable to cuts like this. If the cuts of

04:32the magnitude that are being proposed were to come into effect, states would

04:38have to look at their Medicaid programs and make drastic, drastic cuts, and it's

04:44very likely that those would fall heavily on the home and community based

04:48services programs that are optional, and these are the programs that

04:53provide care at home. They provide home modifications, they provide personal care

04:58assistance, they provide home delivered meals, they provide daycare, so all of

05:04that care in particular would be at extreme risk if cuts like this were to

05:09go into effect. Thank you very much. I just can't tell you in strong enough

05:15terms how concerned, upset, and unnerved constituents are across the

05:23country about this proposal. Thank you. I yield back.

‘Life-Saving Programs... Are Being Dismantled’: Mike Thompson Condemns Proposed Medicaid Cuts

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