HHS Secretary contradicts Trump’s budget chief on cuts to Medicaid

HHS Secretary Tom Price, MD, testified before the Senate Finance Committee on June 8, defending the agency’s proposed budget with a 16 percent reduction across the agency. In doing so, he appears to be telling a different story than Office of Management and Budget Director Mike Mulvaney when it comes to cuts to Medicaid.

As explained by The Hill, Price said the HHS budget doesn’t assume the American Health Care Act (AHCA), the Republican-sponsored plan to replace the Affordable Care Act, would become law. The budget contains $610 billion in Medicaid cuts, while the AHCA would cut additional $839 billion.

“Under current law, outdated, one-size-fits-all federal rules prevent states from prioritizing federal resources to their most vulnerable populations,” Price said. “States are also limited in testing new ideas that will improve access to care and health outcomes. The president’s Budget will unleash state-level policymakers to advance reforms that are tailor-made to meet the unique needs of their citizens.”

This goes against what Mulvaney said when the budget was first released. He said the budget assumes the AHCA “which passed out of the House passes” into law, though because of overlap with the Medicaid cuts, the total amount of reductions would come in around $1.1 trillion.

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