Plans by House Republicans to cut $715 billion in Medicaid spending over ten years has raised concerns among the industry’s top advocates in Washington.
 
The House Energy and Commerce Committee released its plans for Medicaid spending on May 11. Soon after, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated the proposal would cut the number of insured by 8.6 million over a decade.
 
While encouraged by support from House and Senate leaders for preserving Medicaid services, the Alliance for Care at Home noted in response on May 12 that it’s likely not possible to reduce federal Medicaid spending by hundreds of billions of dollars without negatively impacting eligibility and access to care.
 
“We have stated previously, and reiterate now, that we believe there are opportunities to find common ground around reasonable provisions to strengthen program integrity in Medicaid,” the Alliance noted in a statement. “We strongly encourage Congress to reevaluate the framework and pursue more reasonable, achievable policies that do not put services to older adults and persons with disabilities at risk.”
LeadingAge noted that the non-profit providers in its organization, and the patients they serve, will face new burdens and limits to access to care that are aimed at keeping people from getting the health care they need.
 
“The policies in the bill represent dangerous cuts to Medicaid,” said LeadingAge President and CEO Katie Smith Sloan in a statement. “Cuts at the federal level force states into impossible choices: reduce services, limit access or slash provider payments. No matter the route, the result is the same: older adults, their families, and the providers who serve them, lose.”