Exclusive: Sen. Hawley doesn't want to "experiment" with rural hospital funding

• The cuts to Medicaid include rolling back nearly $1 trillion in funding over the next 10 years, including phasing down Medicaid provider taxes.

Driving the news: "My concern is, is what result would it really have?" Hawley asked about the long-term effects of the provider tax on rural hospitals.

• "Would it force us to go out and find new funding in other places?" he asked. "Would it force us to raise taxes in some areas? I don't know the answer to that, and I don't want to risk it. I don't want to take the experiment."
• Hawley commended Republicans for capturing the votes of working-class, blue-collar Americans, but pointed out that the party now needs to deliver policies that benefit them.
• "Does that mean that they're in the Republican Party to stay forever? I don't think so," he said. "It means they're giving the Republican Party a shot."

Context: Hawley introduced the "Protect Medicaid and Rural Hospitals Act" earlier this month to block any future cuts to Medicaid.

• His bill would repeal the provider tax moratorium and the reduction of provider tax authority, which would restore part of the money that states rely on to fund their programs.
• The bill would also double the Rural Health Transformation Fund from $50 billion to $100 billion.

By the numbers: About 1.2 million people are enrolled in Medicaid in Missouri, 50% of whom are children. The federal government funds 78% of total Medicaid spending in Missouri, according to a May report from KFF.