Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., said Tuesday that no one who is eligible for Medicaid will lose benefits under the reconciliation budget bill being considered by the Senate that narrowly passed the House, but she would like to see further reforms to the social safety net for low-income Americans.
A number of Republican senators, including Josh Hawley of Missouri, Susan Collins of Maine, and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, have expressed concerns over cuts to Medicaid provided in the House version of President Donald Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
The legislation contains a number of provisions to slash nearly $800 billion from Medicaid. It includes work requirements for "able-bodied adults" through age 64 without dependents, a provider tax freeze, more frequent eligibility checks, and cutting federal Medicaid payments to states that cover illegal immigrants.
Lummis, talking to reporters on Capitol Hill, was asked by Newsmax congressional correspondent Kilmeny Duchardt about whether she supports Medicaid work requirements and fear stoked by Democrats that some on Medicaid will lose their benefits.
"We do have to have work requirements for able-bodied individuals," Lummis said. "Medicaid was never designed for able-bodied individuals who will not work. And so, people who were originally intended to receive Medicaid will not be cut.
"We do have to get further Medicaid reforms."
According to a 2023 report from the Kaiser Family Foundation, about 64% of working-age, non-disabled Medicaid enrollees are employed.
Senate Democrats are reportedly considering a number of parliamentary measures to prevent or stall any budget legislation from reaching a floor vote, which needs only a simple majority to pass.
"You know, we have encountered the Democrat blockade since January 20th," Lummis said, referring to Inauguration Day. "The kind of issues that they will not allow Republicans to have a win, even if they generally support what we're trying to do. And I think we can get there, but it's not going to be a guaranteed passage of the bill that the House sent us."
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Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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