Louisiana has more residents on Medicaid than nearly any other state in the country. Its representatives in Congress, however, are split on partisan lines over just what the proposed changes to the program in Republicans’ sprawling domestic policy bill would mean for them.
Republicans across Congress have been divided on how to cut the health program for cost savings, or if they should touch it at all. Sen. Josh Hawley recently wrote an op-ed arguing members should not cut the program. Earlier this month, Rep. Brett Guthrie, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, released proposed cuts that would result in 13.7 million people losing coverage, according to a letter from the Congressional Budget Office.
The current House reconciliation bill, which is still being negotiated among Republicans, calls for some $800 billion in Medicaid reductions over the next decade. And the effect of these reductions is expected to be profoundly felt in states like Louisiana. As of February, one-third of Louisiana’s residents were enrolled in Medicaid, according to data from the state’s Department of Health, the second-highest rate of any state.