STATEMENT: Gov. Whitmer Statement as Congress Begins Ramming Through Plan to Cut Medicaid, Terminate Health Care for Millions

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 14, 2025

Gov. Whitmer Statement as Congress Begins Ramming Through Plan to Cut Medicaid, Terminate Health Care for Millions

LANSING, Mich. -- Today, Governor Gretchen Whitmer released the following statement as the U.S. House of Representatives marked up legislation that will massively cut Medicaid, terminate health care for millions of people, and jack up costs for taxpayers. Last week, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) released a report highlighting the devastating impacts of proposed Medicaid cuts on Michiganders, especially seniors, pregnant women, and those living with disabilities.

Congressional Republicans will be held accountable for jamming through legislation to cut hundreds of billions of dollars from Medicaid, terminate health care for millions of our friends, family, and neighbors, and jack up costs on everyone else.

“Medicaid is a lifeline for 2.6 million Michiganders. It covers three in five nursing home residents, nearly half the births in the state, 300,000 people living with disabilities, and helps fund crucial services in our public schools. Seniors will have to go without care and get sicker for no reason. Expecting mothers will be put in danger, losing access to prenatal care that they need to have a safe delivery. Michiganders with disabilities will lose access to basic in-home support, energy assistance, and transportation services they need to survive. Schools will be forced to cut on-campus mental health, speech therapy, and nursing care.

“At the same time, the proposal adds a ton of red tape that will kick people off their coverage, raise administration costs, burden local governments, and reduce resources for providers, who are already stretched thin.

“The Congressional Republican plan to gut Medicaid will kick people who need health care off of it and raise costs on every single taxpayer. It will make us poorer and sicker without actually tackling the root causes of waste, fraud, and abuse that we all agree we need to go after together.

“I’m calling on Republicans in our congressional delegation to consider the disastrous impacts of this budget on their fellow Michiganders and vote no.”

Impacts of Medicaid Cuts on Michiganders

Executive Directive 2025-3 from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, directed MDHHS to identify the potential impact Republican-proposed cuts to Medicaid would have on Michiganders’ health.

Seniors: Medicaid covers 168,000 seniors, ensuring they have access to the critical care, prescription drugs, and medical procedures they need to stay safe and healthy. Michigan’s nursing homes receive over $3 billion in Medicaid funding per year, and three in five nursing room residents are on Medicaid. Proposed cuts would gut funding directly from Michigan nursing homes.

Pregnant Women: Medicaid covers 45% of births statewide and provides thousands of pregnant women access to critical prenatal care, prescriptions, and procedures, helping them stay safe and healthy. The proposed cuts would affect Michigan hospitals, limiting their ability to provide care to pregnant women across the state. Specifically, expecting moms would lose out on services like regular checkups, screenings, and counseling, negatively impacting their ability to have a healthy and safe pregnancy, labor, and delivery.

Rural Areas: Medicaid cuts would have a disproportionate impact on Michigan’s rural areas where over 60% of births are covered by Medicaid. In states that have already rolled back Medicaid, rural hospitals have been forced to close essential departments like labor and delivery, disrupting care for everyone in the community. More pregnant women would be put in unnecessary danger by having to drive further and spend more just to access care. If enacted, cuts to Medicaid would threaten the progress Michigan has made in preserving rural communities’ access to care, driving up rates of morbidity, mortality, and uncompensated care.

Michiganders with Disabilities: Medicaid covers 300,000 people with disabilities, ensuring they have access to the critical care, prescription drugs, and medical procedures they need to stay safe and healthy. Many Michiganders with disabilities rely on Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) providers which receive more than $1.5 billion in Medicaid dollars each year. The services they provide range from personal care and counseling to energy assistance, and transportation. Proposed cuts could gut millions of dollars from HCBS, threatening Michiganders with disabilities who rely on these providers to prevent costly hospitalizations or avoid institutional placements.

Medicaid's Role in Supporting Michigan's Economy

Medicaid plays a key role in supporting the health of Michigan's economy. Michigan’s health care industry has a total economic impact of $77 billion per year: greater than any other industry in the state. Medicaid expansion alone sparked the creation of more than 30,000 new jobs. These jobs boost the personal spending power for Michigan residents by about $2.3 billion each year, resulting in an estimated $150 million in tax revenue annually.

If Republicans succeed, Michigan hospitals could lose out on half a billion dollars in Medicaid funding annually, threatening thousands of jobs. As a result, hospitals in local and rural communities across Michigan will close, threatening access to care, raising prices, and forcing people to drive further for health care. This could drive Michiganders out of our state, reducing our population growth and crippling our economy.

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