Medicaid reductions in GOP bill would negatively impact COPD patients

Concerns Over Medicaid Cuts and COPD Care

Representatives are expressing serious concerns about the deep Medicaid cuts outlined in President Trump’s budget settlement bill, particularly for those suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Rep. Maxine Dexter (D-ORE) emphasized the detrimental impact these cuts can have on Americans with breathing issues at a Tuesday event sponsored by AstraZeneca.

COPD is a progressive lung condition that makes breathing difficult, often resulting from long-term exposure to smoke and air pollution. It’s one of the leading causes of death in the United States, according to the American Lung Association.

“I think we’re in a disaster,” Dexter remarked during the event.

Trump’s proposed budget aims to finance tax cuts by significantly slashing Medicaid—a joint federal and state program crucial for low-income Americans. The plan suggests reducing federal Medicaid funding by $79.3 billion over the next decade, which would lead to 10.3 million fewer people enrolled in the program by 2034.

The nonprofit organization Healthcare Policy points out that this figure also includes about 1.3 million seniors who qualify for both Medicaid and Medicare.

Dexter voiced particular concerns about the implications of these cuts for rural hospitals and their ability to continue caring for fellow residents of Oregon.

Rural hospitals typically operate with tighter profit margins compared to their urban counterparts due to having fewer patients. Medicaid serves as the “financial backbone” for many of these facilities, as noted by the American Center for Progress.

According to Dexter, should the budget bill advance in the Senate with these proposed cuts, some rural hospitals in Oregon might have to shut down. This would force sick patients to travel greater distances for care or depend on already overwhelmed emergency rooms.

“This is a master plan on how to break the system,” Dexter stated.

Grace Anne Dorney Koppel, president of the Dorney-Koppel Foundation and a COPD patient herself, shares Dexter’s concerns. Diagnosed with COPD 24 years ago, Koppel was initially given a grim prognosis. Despite advancements in treatment over the years, she worries that the proposed Medicaid cuts could jeopardize the progress that has been made.

Koppel noted that these cuts would particularly hurt COPD patients in low-income communities, especially in states like Kentucky, Mississippi, and West Virginia, which have high prevalence rates of the condition according to the CDC.