"The Pitt" will tackle Trump's "big, beautiful bill" and Medicaid cuts in season 2

Driving the news: The show's executive producers, John Wells and R. Scott Gemmill, told Variety that they calibrated the legislation's impact, which won't be felt until 2026, by interviewing hundreds of medical professionals.

What they're saying: Wells said that the legislation is "going to have on-the-ground, immediate consequences in emergency rooms."

• "That's a bipartisan agreement," Wells told Variety. "You've got very Republican senators from Missouri like Josh Hawley agreeing that this is going to be a problem."

Flashback: Following the law's passage, Sen. Hawley introduced legislation that would repeal some of the Medicaid cuts, which he voted for. His bill has not progressed since its introduction.

Gemmill said that emergency rooms — the show takes place in one — will feel the brunt of the law's changes.

• "When people have less finances from the government to help them with their healthcare, they're going to end up in the only place where they can get free health care," he said.
• "The ER is just going to get busier and busier … the system is destined for a tipping point."

Catch up quick: The One Big Beautiful Bill Act green lit almost $1.1 trillion in slashes to Medicaid and other health policy changes, likely forcing states to make corresponding reductions to their programs or to pick up a greater share of obligations.

• 12 million people are projected to lose health care coverage under the bill.

• The law also restricts the use of state "provider taxes" to generate additional money for their Medicaid programs.

Hospitals have "just gotten absolutely smoked," Henrietta Treyz of Veda Partners told Axios last month.

In the law's current state, things look especially dire for rural hospitals.

• 69% of surveyed hospital executives predict rural hospitals will close because of the Medicaid funding cuts, according to market intelligence firm Eliciting Insights.
• Rural hospitals have high percentages of Medicaid and Medicare patients, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Noah Wyle, the star of "The Pitt," has lobbied for legislation to improve the lives of health care professionals, tackling staffing shortages and burnout.

• Wyle has advocated for several health care employee bills, including one that offers a tax credit to frontline workers.
• "This is not just a workforce problem, this is a patient care problem," he told CBS News in June. "The trickle down of these things not being enacted will affect all of us eventually."