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Tag: medicaid

  • Rural Nebraska Hospital Shuts Down Over ‘Anticipated Cuts to Medicaid’ Hours Before ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ Passes

    Rural Nebraska Hospital Shuts Down Over ‘Anticipated Cuts to Medicaid’ Hours Before ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ Passes

    A small town clinic in southwest Nebraska will close its doors after more than three decades, citing financial strain and looming federal cuts to Medicaid.

    Community Hospital in McCook announced Wednesday that it will be shutting down the Curtis Medical Center in Curtis — a community of roughly 900 residents. The announcement, reported by KLKN-TV, came just before Congress passed President Donald Trump’s sweeping “Big Beautiful Bill” on Thursday.

    “Unfortunately, the current financial environment, driven by anticipated federal budget cuts to Medicaid, has made it impossible for us to continue operating all of our services, many of which have faced significant financial challenges for years,” Community Hospital CEO Troy Bruntz said in a statement obtained by the outlet.

    The clinic, whose motto is, “Advanced care. Always there,” will phase out operations over the coming months.


    Despite representing Vermont, Sen. Bernie Sanders spoke out about the hospital’s closure, warning that it will likely be “the first of many” due to the estimated Medicaid cuts included in the tax and spending bill.

    “While Republicans celebrate the passage of the largest Medicaid cut in history, the Curtis Medical Center in Nebraska announced it will shut down as a result of these horrific cuts — the first of many hospitals to close,” Sanders said.

    “This is a dark day for rural America and for our country,” he continued.

    The Nebraska Hospital Association and other rural health advocates have sounded alarms about the bill’s potential impact, warning it could force more clinics and hospitals in underserved areas to cut services or close.

    Originally published on Latin Times



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  • Capitol Police Zip-Tied Elderly Wheelchair Users During Protest Over Medicaid Cuts

    Capitol Police Zip-Tied Elderly Wheelchair Users During Protest Over Medicaid Cuts

    U.S. Capitol Police zip-tied older people in their wheelchairs during a “die-in” demonstration protesting President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill,” which is estimated to cut Medicaid by $793 billion over the next 10 years.

    More than 30 protesters were arrested Wednesday for “illegally demonstrating inside the Russell Senate Office Building,” a spokesperson for the U.S. Capitol Police told CNBC. “It is against the law to protest inside the Congressional buildings,” the spokesperson said, adding that “there are other places on Capitol grounds where people can lawfully demonstrate without issue.”

    Videos circulating on social media showed a line of protesters in wheelchairs, their wrists zip-tied in a way that allowed them to maneuver their devices. Many were accompanied by officers. In total, 34 demonstrators were arrested, CNBC reported.


    “Here are people in wheelchairs at Capitol on Wednesday arrested for their ‘die-in’ protest to oppose GOP’s plan to cut Medicaid which will literally kill them,” Dean Obeidallah, host of “The Dean Obeidallah Show,” wrote in a post on X. “The GOP is making these cuts to give their wealthy donors a tax cut. The anger towards GOP and oligarchs is why a Dem socialist won.”

    More than 70 million low-income and disabled Americans rely on Medicaid for health insurance. If Trump’s proposed legislation passes in the Senate, around 16 million people could lose coverage by 2034.



    A number of GOP senators have spoken out against the bill, including Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, Maine Sen. Susan Collins and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who told CBS News last week that she has “been pretty clear that when it comes to Medicaid, those cuts that would harm Alaskan beneficiaries, that’s not something that I can take home, right?”

    “We have some of the highest health care costs in the country. We have 40% of Alaska’s kids that are on Medicaid. I want to try to do what we can to address certain aspects of our entitlement spending,” Murkowski stated. “We’ve got to do that. But doing it with the most vulnerable bearing the brunt of that is not the answer,” she added.

    Originally published on Latin Times



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  • GOP Senator Ridiculed for Insisting Americans ‘Transitioning From Medicaid’ Will Get Insurance From Employers: ‘Do Employers Know?’

    GOP Senator Ridiculed for Insisting Americans ‘Transitioning From Medicaid’ Will Get Insurance From Employers: ‘Do Employers Know?’

    A Republican Senator is being ridiculed online for stating that the millions of people that will be removed from Medicaid if President Donald Trump’s “one big, beautiful bill” passes will then transition to employer-provided healthcare.

    Oklahoma Senator James Lankford appeared on CNBC’s ‘Squawk Box’ in conversation with host Rebecca Quick on Thursday, where he discussed the potential impacts of the Trump-back GOP spending bill.

    “People are screaming and saying, ‘It’s kicking people off Medicaid.’ It’s not kicking people off Medicaid. It’s transitioning from Medicaid to employer-provided healthcare. So yes, we’ve got 10 million people that are not gonna be on Medicaid, but they then are gonna be on employer-provided healthcare,” said Lankford.


    Social media users reacted incredulously, mocking Lankford for assuming that millions of people would immediately have access to employer provided healthcare options.

    “Do the employers who don’t provide health insurance know??” said one user.


    “Except when your minimum wage job has no healthcare,” said another.


    “So it’s kicking people off medicaid,” wrote a third.


    “That’s IF the employer provides healthcare that is affordable! These are working poor who live paycheck to paycheck and have little left to afford healthcare!” concurred a fourth.


    Lankford, who is a member of the Finance Committee, met with Trump to discuss the tax and spending bill on Wednesday. He continued to outline what exactly legislators discussed with Trump in the meeting.

    “About a two hour conversation about what’s happening on taxes, what are agreements going to be, what direction we’re going to try and take. It was broad in many areas. The House has already passed their piece, the Senate has got to pass our piece then that’s going to line up with the House and the President has got to sign. It’s very important that we align all three right now, so it was a coordination meeting yesterday quite frankly,” said Lankford.

    Originally published on Latin Times



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  • Arizona Pastor Accused of Medicaid Fraud After Submitting False Claims Worth Millions: Attorney General

    Arizona Pastor Accused of Medicaid Fraud After Submitting False Claims Worth Millions: Attorney General

    An Arizona pastor has been indicted alongside 16 others in a sweeping Medicaid fraud case, accused of helping funnel millions in state healthcare funds through fake rehab claims and laundering the proceeds through his church, state officials announced.

    A grand jury indicted 17 individuals and two organizations, including Hope of Life International Church and its pastor, Theodore Mucuranyana. Authorities allege that from August 2022 to July 2023, co-defendants Desire Rusingizwa and Fabrice Mvuyekure used their business, Happy House Behavioral Health, to submit more than $60 million in fraudulent Medicaid claims, according to AZ Central.



    Prosecutors allege that the company billed for services to patients who were deceased, incarcerated or hospitalized—and funneled more than $5 million to the church as the investigation loomed.

    Most defendants were scheduled to be arraigned between May 20 and May 27. Mucuranyana and the church face money laundering charges, while Happy House has been suspended from the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System. Assets including luxury goods and properties are now subject to seizure as part of ongoing investigations.

    The pastor’s lawyer told 12 News that he knew “nothing” about the alleged fraud.

    Since Attorney General Kris Mayes took office in early 2023, over 100 people across 14 cases have been charged following accusations of exploiting the system—largely by billing for nonexistent alcohol and drug rehabilitation services,

    Officials say more indictments could follow as investigations continue into how widespread the misuse of state funds may be.

    Originally published on Latin Times

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  • GOP Lawmaker Insists People Can ‘Keep Their Medicaid’ If They ‘Just Get a Job’

    GOP Lawmaker Insists People Can ‘Keep Their Medicaid’ If They ‘Just Get a Job’

    As the GOP works to complete its “big, beautiful bill,” Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) defended proposed work requirements for Medicaid recipients.


    House Republicans have been tasked with finding $880 billion in Medicaid savings over the next decade — a substantial hurdle for lawmakers beholden to voters, 76% of whom oppose cuts to Medicaid, according to a recent KFF poll. Rather than explicitly cutting services, the GOP is reportedly looking to save money with work requirements for “able-bodied adults” who receive Medicaid.

    “The person we’re taking it away from is the able-bodied adult with no children who refuses to work,” Crenshaw told FOX Business. “By the way, if they would just get a job, they could keep their Medicaid.”

    The proposal would require able-bodied adults to work or volunteer 20 hours each week to qualify for Medicaid coverage.

    Crenshaw’s comments echo GOP messaging on the issue.

    “For some people, the best way to get back on your feet is to get off your ass,” Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) said in February.

    House Speaker Mike Johnson described the work requirement as a way to, “Return the dignity of work to young men who need to be at work instead of playing video games all day.”

    Housing Secretary Scott Turner also framed the reform as the restoration of dignity. “We’ve created welfare as a lifestyle in our country,” Turner said. “Able-bodied, able-minded people that are receiving HUD funding should go to work and restore dignity.”

    While the GOP insists work requirements are not benefit cuts, research has suggested otherwise.

    In Arkansas, where Medicaid work requirements were implemented between June 2018 and March 2019 before a federal court deemed the program unlawful, more than 18,000 people lost coverage. Among those who lost coverage, researchers found many had met the work requirements or would qualify for an exemption, but failed to navigate and comply with reporting requirements. The state saw an increase in uninsured adults and no significant changes in employment.

    Most adults with Medicaid (64%) are already working. Of those who aren’t employed, most would qualify for exemption from work requirements due to an illness or disability, caregiving responsibilities, or school attendance.

    The legislation aims at “restoring dignity” for the remaining 8% of adults on Medicaid who are not working due to retirement, an inability to find work, or undisclosed reasons. However, critics warn the reporting requirements could impact millions of recipients beyond the targeted group, particularly vulnerable populations who lack internet access or computer literacy.

    The House Budget Committee voted to reject the bill on Friday. While the committee is set to reconvene next week, it’s unclear if they will meet Speaker Johnson’s Memorial Day deadline to pass the bill to the Senate.

    Originally published on Latin Times



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