Illustration: Aïda Amer / Axios
Medicaid policies under consideration by the GOP for reconciliation would cause millions of people to lose health coverage while saving hundreds of billions of dollars, congressional scorekeepers found.
Why it matters: The estimates highlight the political stakes for Republicans, who have dialed back some of their moves in the face of backlash from moderates against deeper cuts.
Driving the news: The CBO estimates, requested by congressional Democrats, describe versions of some ideas Republicans have been considering.
- Tightening eligibility checks by repealing a Biden-era eligibility rule would lead to 600,000 more uninsured people and save $162 billion over a decade.
- Fully cracking down on provider taxes would lead to 3.9 million more uninsured people and save $668 billion. (Republicans would likely pursue a more limited policy that doesn't fully eliminate provider taxes.)
Other policies reviewed by CBO may be off the table for now for the GOP but could come back if conservative demands are strong enough.
- Cutting the federal share of costs, or FMAP, for the Medicaid expansion to match the rates for traditional Medicaid would cause 2.4 million people to become uninsured and save $710 billion.
- A per capita cap on the expansion population would cause 1.5 million people to become uninsured and save $225 billion.
