Just in case the Obama administration didn’t know it already, cutting Medicare is hard to do.
During a Senate Finance Committee hearing Wednesday on President Barack Obama鈥檚 , both Republicans who have sought major changes to entitlements, and Democrats, who have vowed to preserve the programs, 聽expressed misgivings.
Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., accused the administration of taking a 鈥淟izzie Borden whack鈥 at , which provide basic emergency and inpatient care in rural areas. Democratic Sens. Maria Cantwell of Washington, Bill Nelson of Florida and Robert Menendez of New Jersey objected to cuts in graduate medical education, saying they would hurt local hospitals and reduce the number of physicians who could be trained to treat the millions of Americans expected to gain coverage under the 2010 health law. Graduate medical education funding cuts would undermine 鈥渢he very essence of the goals of the [Affordable Care Act],鈥 Menendez said.
Even committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., when he wasn鈥檛 grilling Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius about the , expressed concern about cuts to nursing homes, saying that they 鈥渕ay be too high and reduce access to care.鈥
Obama鈥檚 budget proposal follows his efforts to craft a 鈥済rand bargain鈥 with Republican lawmakers that would cut entitlements and raise revenues to steady the federal budget. The comments at the hearing, however, suggest that he may have a way to go to persuade lawmakers.
