Senate Republicans hit a major setback in their race to pass a massive tax and spending package on Thursday, as a chamber official ruled against a key Medicaid provision, putting in doubt plans for a vote by the end of the week. The nonpartisan Senate parliamentarian, who plays a key role in determining what provisions can stay in the fast-tracked bill, said the GOP change to how states can tax Medicaid providers does not adhere to rules for passing the bill with a simple majority. This was a key provision to help offset the costs of the bill's tax cuts.
Republican senators are pushing back hard on hundreds of billions of dollars in Medicaid cuts included in the Senate version of President Trump's budget reconciliation package, endangering Senate Majority Leader John Thune's (R-S.D.) plan for a vote as soon as Friday. Two Republicans are a hard “no” on the bill — Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.) and Ron Johnson (Wis.) — and a handful of other Republicans won't say whether they'll vote to begin debate on the package because they are concerned that deep cuts in Medicaid spending could cause millions of Americans to lose their coverage and push scores of rural hospitals around the country into bankruptcy.
Medicaid is widely popular, including among many Republican voters in their now more working-class coalition forged by President Trump. So how can Republicans cut Medicaid while sheltering themselves from the political fallout of cutting Medicaid? Their answer: work requirements. Draft versions of the bill have included provisions that would force millions of working-age, able-bodied adults to work to receive Medicaid — and every six months show the government proof they work to remain on the program.
Capitol Police officers were seen zip-tying the hands of senior citizens in wheelchairs on Wednesday during protests against proposed Medicaid cuts. Video shows one officer tightening a zip tie over the wrists of one man in a wheelchair, featuring what appeared to be a communication aid screen, next to a senior woman already zip-tied. A second man in a wheelchair was also shown with his hands zip-tied.
CVS Health’s pharmacy benefit manager, Caremark, has been ordered to pay $95 million for overbilling Medicare Part D drug reimbursements, a federal judge ruled Wednesday — a decision that could balloon to $285 million if treble damages are imposed. The ruling stems from a False Claims Act lawsuit brought by whistleblower Sarah Behnke, a former actuary at Aetna, who accused CVS Caremark Corp. of artificially inflating drug prices submitted to CMS, while paying pharmacies like Rite Aid and Walgreens significantly less.
More than a dozen House Republicans warned they won't support the Senate's version of the tax and spending bill because the proposed Medicaid cuts are too steep. Led by Rep. David Valadao (R-Calif.), 15 other vulnerable Republicans sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) saying they support the Medicaid reforms in the House version of the legislation, but the Senate Finance Committee proposal went too far.