Congressman Wesley Bell’s no vote could not stop the House from narrowly passing President Trump’s budget bill that would “gut” Medicaid,” according to Bell.
His fellow Democrat Nikki Budzinski of Illinois, whose district covers parts of the Metro East, also voted no.
Republican Congresswoman Ann Wagner voted yes on the budget bill that analysts say would lead to tens of thousands of Missourians losing health care and threaten rural hospitals throughout the state.
The Senate was debating changes in the House bill late Wednesday, with a possible vote coming as soon as Thursday June 26.
Bell visited Affinia Healthcare’s 4414 N. Florissant Ave., location on Friday June 20 and applauded its work.
The regional healthcare provider serves many low-income individuals, and Bell’s tour of the facility occurred while the Medicaid tussle continued in the Senate.
Some Republican Senate members are seeking deeper cuts to Medicaid than the House bill.
Bell addressed possible Medicaid cuts if Trump’s budget bill is adopted by the House and Senate.
“Too many folks in our underserved communities are dependent on that particular resource,” Bell said.
“And let’s get past some of the terminology. We’re talking about poor folks, folks who need these services. Many of which are working folks with jobs.”
He recalled his days as former St. Louis County prosecutor when he collaborated with Affinia President and CEO Kendra Holmes on mental and healthcare initiatives for underserved and vulnerable populations.
“Access to quality healthcare was a top priority for me then and continues to be today,” he said.
“It’s important for me to be here as your congressman because the work [Affinia does] is invaluable. You have an ally in DC.”
Holmes said Affinia is “a safety net for the uninsured and underinsured populations.”
Unfavorable polling numbers
According to a poll released last week by the Kaiser Family Foundation, just 13% of Democrats and 27% of independents view the House bill favorably.
Views fluctuated when the people surveyed were asked specific questions about certain elements of the package and the real-world impacts of the legislation:
- The overall percentage of those surveyed with an unfavorable view of the bill increased from 64% to 67% when they were told it would lower federal spending on Medicaid by more than $700 billion, an estimate by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.
- Dislike of the legislation rose to 74% when those polled were told policy changes would lead to 10 million people losing their health insurance coverage, another estimate from the CBO analysis.
- Opposition rose to 79% when people were told the legislation would reduce funding for local hospitals – many of them rural.
Josh Hawley is among the GOP senators concerned that changing the provider tax rate in states that expanded Medicaid coverage under the Affordable Care Act would be a problem for rural hospitals.
Hawley wants GOP leaders put back in the House language that would freeze the Medicaid provider tax rate at 6%.
“We have to do something,” Hawley said.
“If we pass this as it is, there’s going to be a lot of rural hospitals in Missouri that close. So that’s a big problem.”
Hawley does support work requirements for Medicaid recipients, which estimates show could also lead to thousands of Missourians being dropped from Medicaid rolls – not because they don’t work but because of bureaucratic hassle.
The work requirements would apply to adults on Medicaid between ages 19 and 64, requiring them to report at least 80 hours of work per month or qualify for an exception. The exemptions include people with disabilities, caregivers and pregnant participants.
A report from the Urban Institute and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation published last month found between 84,000 and 96,000 Missourians ages 19 to 64 could lose coverage under the plan.
The poll also showed that that 83% of Americans support Medicaid, with 93% of Democrats, 83% of independents and 74% of Republicans holding a favorable opinion of the state-federal health program for lower-income people and some with disabilities.
“The public hasn’t had much time to digest what’s in the big, beautiful, but almost incomprehensible bill as it races through Congress, and many don’t have a lot of information about it,” KFF President and CEO Drew Altman wrote in a statement.
“Our poll shows that views toward the bill and its health-care provisions can shift when presented with more information and arguments about its effects, even among MAGA supporters.”
According to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, Republicans’ reconciliation bill will force 16 million Americans to lose their health insurance. And the bill will cost $2.8 trillion over the next decade.
“There is simply no way that they can make those kinds of cuts to Medicaid without slashing healthcare for Americans, slashing healthcare for Missourians,” said Traci Gleason with the Missouri Budget Project.
Sylvester Brown Jr. is the Deaconess Foundation Community Advocacy Fellow.