A new projection from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that President Donald Trump’s tax and budget bill would add $2.4 trillion to the national debt over the next 10 years.
The CBO estimates that the package backed by most Republicans would increase the number of uninsured Americans by 10.9 million by 2034, due to spending cuts to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act.
The initial deficit projection was $2.3 trillion, but it is now slightly higher following adjustments made in the House of Representatives.
The Senate prepares to review the bill under the Reconciliation process, which requires a simple Republican majority.
Some of the Republican changes that would increase the debt include a higher deduction for state and local taxes (SALT) and a provision adding work requirements for Medicaid eligibility.
The estimate indicates that over a 10-year period, the legislation would reduce revenue by $3.7 trillion while cutting net spending by $1.3 trillion.
“In Medicaid, Republicans are seeking to impose work requirements that would strip health coverage from many low-income individuals,” Shelby Gonzales, vice president of Immigration Policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), told this newspaper.
She added that Medicaid complications include additional hurdles, such as requiring people to re-evaluate their Medicaid eligibility twice a year instead of once.
“We know many eligible people lose coverage during renewal,” she said. “Basically, we’re talking about $800 billion in Medicaid cuts, and many people will lose their health coverage as a result.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson (Louisiana) continues to defend the so-called “The one, big, beautiful bill”, but Senate Majority Leader John Thune acknowledges it will be “a challenge” for his caucus to pass the bill.
Thune has exactly one month to advance the president’s fiscal and budget plan, as Trump wants to sign the bill by July 4.
“We’re all going to die”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (New York) warned that the CBO report was “worse” than projected regarding the Republican bill.
“We’ve all been hearing about how devastating the Medicaid and healthcare cuts have been. Well, it’s getting worse. The more you look at the House bill, the worse it gets,” he said. “The Congressional Budget Office is about to announce that the number could rise from 13.7 million people losing coverage to 16 million. And new calculations will show that even Medicare is in crisis.”
Schumer paraphrased Republican Senator Joni Ernst (Iowa), who, during a meeting with voters, responded, “Well, we’re all going to die,” when questioned about Medicaid cuts.
“Well, here’s the ‘we’re all going to die’ […] nearly 14 million, approaching 16 million, according to the Congressional Budget Office numbers […] we’re all going to die. And that shows the callousness of this Republican majority in the House of Representatives.”
Senator Ron Wyden (Oregon) warned that seniors are among the groups most affected by the Republican bill.
“The American people deserve to know what’s really going on, especially seniors, whom I’ve known since my days as director of the Gray Panthers. They have a right to know what incredibly harmful provisions this legislation contains,” he said.
Senator Maggie Hassan (New Hampshire) criticized that the plan pushed by President Trump provides “tax breaks to billionaires and special corporate interests.”
“[That will be] financed by trillions added to the national debt, financed by stripping health coverage from 36,000 Granite State residents and millions of Americans, and resulting in nearly $500 billion in Medicare cuts,” she said.
Image: Opinion
