By George Chapman
Several national polls revealed 70% of Americans were opposed to the proposed $1 trillion in cuts to Medicaid and 77% of us have a positive attitude toward Medicaid.
Nevertheless, the “Big Beautiful Bill” was passed. About 44% of New Yorkers receive some sort of benefit via Medicaid, which includes Child Health Plus, expanded Medicaid on the marketplace, disability and long-term care. The Medicaid cuts will have a devastating impact on our 700 or so rural hospitals. The states with the most rural hospitals are Texas, Kansas, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Georgia. Some 65% to 80% of rural hospital revenue comes from Medicaid. So the impact of millions of people losing their Medicaid coverage will certainly cause hospitals already on the brink of bankruptcy to close. Hospital closures also mean loss of jobs. Rural hospitals are often one of the top employers in a community. When a rural hospital closes, so do smaller businesses in the community that supplied the hospital or depended on its business. Any business considering locating in a rural area will think twice if there isn’t a nearby hospital. The only hope for most rural hospitals is to be absorbed by a regional hospital system. Inpatient beds may close but vital primary, specialty and urgent care would be supported.
Uninsured to Increase
The “Big Beautiful Bill” will, for the first time in over a century, increase the percentage of Americans without health insurance. The ACA reduced that percentage to around 10% in states that accepted expanded Medicaid and to around 14% in states that did not accept federally supported expanded Medicaid. The congressional budget office estimates that 12 million people will lose their coverage by 2034. Once again, we remain the only economically advanced country to not incorporate a form of universal coverage. Unfortunately, healthcare has been politicized. We have the highest per capita cost of healthcare in the world including underdeveloped countries.
