The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has reported that the Energy and Commerce Committee, which oversees Medicaid, has exceeded its target of identifying $880 billion in savings. This is intended to support Trump’s initiatives for expanding tax cuts and other priorities.
In a brief letter addressed to Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Brett Guthrie (R-KY), the CBO stated that the recommendations from the committee would reduce the deficit by over $880 billion by 2034, ensuring that “the annual budget deficit from 2034 will not increase.”
No additional information regarding the overall costs was provided in the letter.
The Energy and Commerce Committee introduced the bill late Sunday. This legislation includes abrupt cuts to Medicaid but leaves out some controversial reform proposals.
GOP committee staff informed reporters that they aimed to obtain a complete CBO score for the bill by Tuesday’s session. However, they expressed concerns that they might have to amend the bill and proceed without it in time.
This push to advance the bill’s lengthy markup without a full CBO assessment is reminiscent of the GOP’s attempts to dismantle Obamacare in 2017, a time when Democrats accused Republicans of underestimating the CBO’s predictions of millions losing health coverage.
Late Sunday, Democrats released a partial CBO analysis of the committee’s proposal, projecting a reduction in federal spending by approximately $912 billion over ten years, with $715 billion attributed to health-related provisions, potentially leaving 8.6 million people uninsured.
