WASHINGTON – House Republicans plan to enact work requirements and more frequent eligibility checksfor Medicaid, according to a proposal released late on May 11 by a key GOP-led committee. However, the House Energy and Commerce Committee's proposal does not pursuesome of the deeper cutsthat lawmakers had considered, including lowering the federal match rates with states or capping per-person federal spending in Medicaid. The highly anticipated plan is expected to be a part of House Republicans'party-line billto implement President Donald Trump's agenda. More:Millions of people could lose coverage under Trump-backed GOP plans to cut Medicaid: CBO The Energy and Commerce Committee was directed to find $880 billion in savings. Trump had ruled out cuts to Medicare and Social Security, so Medicaid was the largest remaining program on the chopping block. But the proposal appears aimed at enticing GOP moderates who had said they cannot vote for major changes to the program that provides health insurance for more than 71 million low-income Americans. Committee chairman Brett Guthrie, R-Kentucky, told theWall Street Journalhe expects the biggest pushback to come from Republicans who feel it "doesn't go far enough." It sets up a potential showdown withfiscal conservatives, who have pushed their colleagues to overhaul the program and want the final Republican tax package to cut as much money as it spends. Lawmakers are also proposing to bar the use of Medicaid and CHIP funding for gender transition procedures for people under age 18; lowering the federal match rate for states that use their Medicaid infrastructure to provide health care to undocumented immigrants; and reducing cost-sharing for Medicaid Expansion patients who make more than the federal poverty level, which is currently $32,150 for a family of four. The proposal also includes a provision to bar people fromusing Medicaidunless their citizenship, nationality or immigration status has been verified. More:Trump open to Medicaid work requirements as GOP debates spending cuts It's not immediately clear whether the proposed changes meet the $880 billion in savings the committee was directed to find. The committee will meet Tuesday to consider the legislation. Any cuts to Medicaid are sure to meet with strong opposition, and not just from Democrats. Ina New York Times opinion essaypublished May 12, Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., wrote: "It's safe to say the Trump coalition was not pulling the lever for Medicaid cuts in November." Instead, Hawley wrote, working families deserve a cap on prescription drug prices and tax cuts. "What we should not do is eliminate their health care," he said. More:The latest on what President Trump is saying about Medicaid Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, also slammed the House GOP for its proposal, saying Trump's party has "defied the will of the American public by proposing the largest Medicaid cut in history." "This bill must not pass," said Wyden, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee. Congressional Republicans aim to finish their spending package by July 4. But the hard deadline will come at the beginning of August, when Treasury Sec. Scott Bessent warned the United States will likelyhit its debt limit. The central piece of the package will be an extension of Trump's 2017 tax cuts, which expire at the end of the year. The president also wants to eliminate tax on tips, overtime and Social Security payments. More:Health Sec. Kennedy launches autism project using Medicare and Medicaid data The bill is also expected to roll back several clean energy provisions implemented under former PresidentJoe Bidenand increase spending on defense and border security. Republicans plan to pass the package using a process called "reconciliation," which allows them to bypass the filibuster in the Senate and negates the need for Democratic support. (This story has This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Republican Medicaid proposal seeks to walk the line on cuts
