Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Medicaid Work Requirements Could Be Instituted In Early 2027
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) said Monday that Republicans are eyeing early 2027 as the target date for the new Medicaid work requirements in the large budget package intended to advance and solidify President Trump鈥檚 agenda. The timeline for the bill鈥檚 new work requirements remains up in the air, as Republican leadership continues to negotiate with warring factions of the conference over details of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act 鈥 which would extend Trump鈥檚 tax cuts and boost his border funding priorities while reforming Medicaid and food assistance programs. (Fortinsky, 5/19)
President Donald Trump is heading to Capitol Hill early Tuesday to seal the deal on his 鈥渂ig, beautiful bill,鈥 using the power of political persuasion to unify divided House Republicans on the multitrillion-dollar package that is at risk of collapsing ahead of planned votes this week. Trump has implored GOP holdouts to 鈥淪TOP TALKING, AND GET IT DONE.鈥 But negotiations are slogging along and it鈥檚 not at all clear the package, with its sweeping tax breaks and cuts to Medicaid, food stamps and green energy programs, has the support needed from the House鈥檚 slim Republican majority, who are also being asked to add some $350 billion to Trump鈥檚 border security, deportation and defense agenda. (Mascaro, Freking and Askarinam, 5/20)
Republicans knew they鈥檇 have to overcome fierce internal divisions, thorny policy trade-offs and rock-solid Democratic resistance to pass their massive domestic policy bill. They didn鈥檛 count on a Wall Street backlash, too. A softening Treasury bond market and surprise downgrade Friday of U.S. creditworthiness are the latest forces weighing on the GOP megabill 鈥 an unmistakable nudge to lawmakers that investors are growing increasingly concerned about legislation that could pile trillions of dollars more onto an already staggering national debt. (Guggenheim, Sutton and Lee Hill, 5/19)
The Medicaid battle being waged by House Republicans is just the latest iteration of a long-running fight to repeal the Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare. Millions of Americans stand to lose health coverage if the Medicaid cuts in the latest version of the reconciliation bill become law. (Peck, 5/20)
