E&C Leaders & Health Experts Reinforce the Benefits of President Trump’s Working Families Tax Cuts
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In President Trump’s historic Working Families Tax Cuts, House Republicans implemented provisions that protect our federal health care programs for the traditional Medicaid population—our expectant mothers, their children, low-income seniors, and individuals with disabilities. FACT: The enactment of the Working Families Tax Cuts emphasized the need for and importance of guardrails to stabilize and strengthen the Medicaid program for the vulnerable Americans it was designed to serve and assist for generations to come. Republicans remain adamantly opposed to Democrat policies that allow illegal immigrants, able-bodied adults choosing not to work, and people who aren’t actually qualified for Medicaid (or at times people who are dead or enrolled in two state programs at the same time) to continue consuming resources from a rapidly growing system. The Republican solution invests billions into long-term care for our seniors and people with disabilities by establishing a new pathway for states to offer home and community-based services to more people who are in need. The new investment will lead to an increase in tens of billions of new dollars in long-term care spending, while also diverting and delaying the eventual need for more expensive, acute care. Democrats’ continued efforts to mislead Americans through false claims that the traditional Medicaid population will lose their care because of this bill are simply not true. Nothing in the Working Families Tax Cuts law would change benefits for pregnant women, children, seniors, or individuals who are disabled. Instead, the bill included numerous commonsense provisions that reduce abuse in the program and allow Medicaid resources to help uplift the traditional Medicaid population and ensure Medicaid remains a safety net for generations to come. “Time and again, Republicans have fought for strengthening, sustaining, and securing the Medicaid program for our most vulnerable Americans—expectant mothers, children, low-income seniors, and individuals living with disabilities,” said House Committee on Energy and Commerce Chairman Brett Guthrie . “No matter how many times we emphasize the point, the truth of the Working Families Tax Cuts law stays the same: despite the claim of left-wing media, members of the traditional Medicaid population will not lose coverage due to this law. Republicans are enabling the Medicaid program to serve its intended purpose, and we will continue to fight for solutions that protect the program for generations to come.” “House Republicans advanced a legislative product that lowers health care premiums, promotes community engagement and delivers fairness and accountability to our health care system. The Working Families Tax Cuts increases oversight efforts as part of a larger package of Medicaid program integrity measures to more precisely serve the traditional Medicaid and the Medicaid Expansion populations,” said Health Subcommittee Chairman Morgan Griffith . “Progressive Democrats and their Congressional allies are desperate as they try to pan the Working Families Tax Cuts as devastating to the traditional Medicaid population, which is not true! The traditional Medicaid population, which includes expectant mothers, low-income seniors, children and individuals with disabilities, is not affected by our bill!” “AFP proudly supported the Working Families Tax Cut Act, and we’ll defend it to our dying day. With this landmark law, Republicans averted the biggest tax hike in American history, secured the border, and unleashed America’s energy abundance, and delivered on some of the most important, pro-patient health care reforms in a generation. We especially applaud Republicans for disregarding Democrats’ hyperbolic claims and histrionic scare tactics aimed at blocking any change to Medicaid, a vital part of our nation’s health care safety net. Years of Democratic neglect and profligacy have allowed Medicaid to become swollen with waste, fraud, and abuse, including billions in ‘free’ health care for illegal immigrants. Republicans have come to the rescue, preserving Medicaid for low-income, disabled, and other vulnerable Americans—refocusing it on those who need it most. And they did it without cutting benefits in any way. We also applaud the new law because it boldly advances a Personal Option—affordable health care you can trust,” said Senior Health Policy Fellow at Americans for Prosperity, Dean Clancy. “Only a few months old, it’s already increasing the quality and accessibility of health care by expanding access to powerful tools like tax-free Health Savings Accounts and exciting new options like direct primary care, which gives patients affordable, round-the-clock access to the doctors they trust—without insurance company meddling. On behalf of our thousands of grassroots activists, we applaud President Trump and his fellow Republicans for taking the first big leap toward the affordable, personalized health care system Americans want and deserve.” “The Working Families Tax Cuts rightfully refocuses Medicaid on low-income children, pregnant women, the elderly, and the disabled. It does this by preserving federal health programs for citizens and lawful residents. It requires able-bodied, working-age adults to work, go to school, or volunteer to receive benefits. It cracks down on corporate-welfare schemes that direct billions of dollars to wealthy, politically connected insurers and hospitals. And it reduces waste, fraud, and abuse that divert resources from those that truly need it,” said President of Paragon Health Institute, Brian Blase, Ph.D. “As Director of Able Americans, I’m encouraged to see the Working Families Tax Cuts (WFTC) include two key provisions that will directly improve the lives of Americans with disabilities. “First, the WFTC incorporates the Helping Communities with Better Support (HCBS) Act, which expands access to Medicaid home- and community-based services for individuals with disabilities and their caregivers. This provision increases transparency and accountability for those waiting for care—an essential step toward dignity and choice. “Next, the bill strengthens ABLE Accounts by extending vital tax provisions that help people with disabilities save for their futures without fear of losing benefits like Medicaid. It codifies a $1,000 savers credit and allows families to roll over 529 education savings accounts into ABLE Accounts—promoting financial security, independence, and flexibility for those navigating work and long-term care needs. “Importantly, the WFTC protects the future of Medicaid for the most vulnerable it was intended to serve. WFTC adds critical protections against abuse of the program and adds a community engagement requirement for expansion-population, able-bodied adults. Those who are unable to work because of their disability or who are receiving medical care are not included in this requirement,” said Director of the National Center’s Able Americans Program, Rachel K. Barkley. What Republicans Did Under the Working Families Tax Cuts: The law made historic investments for the most vulnerable. Through the $50 billion dollar investment from the Rural Health Transformation Program, states have the opportunity to bolster their ability to care for the vulnerable by: Helping maintain essential services like emergency room care, labor and delivery services, and behavioral health care; Funding rural emergency medical services (EMS) and support training for new EMS personnel; and/or Investing in technology infrastructure to help communities better access care, to name only a few examples. The Working Families Tax Cuts law also implemented the largest ever investment in Home and Community Based Services, which are vital for members of the traditional population such as seniors and individuals who are disabled. Republicans reinstated States’ ability to conduct more frequent eligibility redeterminations for able-bodied adults. This strengthens program integrity by requiring states to check eligibility every six months to ensure enrollees—particularly the able-bodied, working-age adult expansion category—are unable to take advantage of a system that was created to protect our most vulnerable. This law also takes action to prohibit Medicaid from wasting money covering beneficiaries who have died, or the same individual enrolled in multiple states. WFTC cracked down on States’ capacity to provide Medicaid coverage to non-citizens. States should not be granted more federal funding for providing care to non-citizens then they are for our pregnant women, their children, low-income seniors, and individuals with disabilities. The law increased personal accountability for able-bodied, unemployed adults within the expansion population to lift Americans out of poverty and re-enter society. Establishing work requirements for able-bodied adults who are choosing not to work helps ensure that Medicaid is there to continue to support future generations of Americans most in need—our expectant mothers, low-income seniors, children, and individuals with disabilities. The Working Families Tax Cuts law set a $1 million limit on the home value people can keep when applying for Medicaid, ensuring help goes to those who truly need it. The bill includes commonsense policies to ensure resources are focused on those who need it the most, not on people with million-dollar homes. The legislation reduced States’ reliance on gimmicks that shift costs of care for members of the expansion population onto the federal taxpayer, making sure states are paying their fair share. States have been taking advantage of federal taxpayers to inflate their Medicaid programs, especially in expanding care for able-bodied adults. Our legislation holds state accountable. CLICK HERE to read the Fox News article, Republicans, health experts push back on Democrats’ Medicaid ‘scare tactics’ ###