The trade group representing insurers is warning budget legislation could lead to ‘unprecedented’ coverage losses.
In a May 22 statement, AHIP President Mike Tuffin said that proposed budget legislation would increase uninsured rates and could raise premiums in the individual market and set back efforts on chronic disease.
On May 22, the House of Representatives passed the President Donald Trump-backed “One Big Beautiful Bill.” The package contains significant Medicaid cuts, including work requirements for able-bodied adults.
The bill now heads to the Senate, though the date for a vote is not yet set.
If the current version of the bill is passed, and enhanced premium tax credits for individual market coverage are not extended, 15 million people could become uninsured over the coming years, Mr. Tuffin wrote.
“Coverage losses of this magnitude would be unprecedented for our country,” he said.
Other healthcare organizations have condemned the cuts to Medicaid. Chip Kahn, CEO of the Federation of American Hospitals, called the bill a “death knell to critical hospital services.”
The Senate is expected to make significant changes to the legislation, Politico reported May 22. GOP senators are split, with some advocating for deeper cuts, and others urging a softening of some of the House bill’s Medicaid provisions.
Mr. Tuffin said reductions in healthcare coverage are “a big step in the wrong direction.”
“While policymakers crafting budget legislation face difficult choices balancing numerous competing priorities, there can be no debate that maintaining affordable health insurance is a top priority for American families,” Mr. Tuffin said. “As the budget reconciliation process continues, Congress should support low-income people and working families by keeping coverage stable and access to care affordable.”
