This is the fundamental design of the Senate’s health care bill.
It’s hard to miss the fundamental design of the Senate’s health care plan to repeal and replace Obamacare: a bill that makes deep cuts to services for low-income Americans to pay for tax cuts that would largely benefit the country’s wealthiest. The now confirms it: Medicaid, a health service for poorer Americans, as well as the disabled and elderly, would see a $772 billion cut over the next 10 years. To what end? This chart in the CBO’s report is a telling diagram of why Republicans are trying so adamantly to gut the program: They’ re trying to offset the cost of tax cuts to reduce the deficit. Here is the chart: As you can see, on one side there are the parts of the health care bill that would increase the deficit, the majority of which come from the “repeal or delay of taxes on high income people, fees on manufacturers and excise taxes enacted under AHCA” — in other words, cutting taxes on the rich and corporations. Then in the “savings column, ” there is $772 billion from a “reduction and termination of enhanced federal matching funds” and “per capita-based cap on Medicaid payments.” This is in reference to the part of the health care bill that looks to phase out Medicaid expansion in 2021 and restructure funding for the program that would ultimately result in less funding to states for Medicaid. this major change in the programs: The CBO is laying out clearly: The Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017 reduces the deficit overall by $321 billion over the next 10 years — a major goal of conservatives — but does so on the backs of the most vulnerable Americans in exchange for tax cuts. As put it, there’s no hiding it: “It’s a massive redistribution from the poor to the rich.”
