COLUMBUS, Ohio — Concerns over Medicaid cuts caused chaos in the U.S. Capitol minutes into President Donald Trump’s address to Congress this week.
For the first time, a U.S. representative was kicked out of chambers. Representative Al Green from Texas stood and yelled that the president does not have a mandate to cut Medicaid.
In Ohio, the Department of Medicaid receives a $.65 federal match for every state dollar spent on its programs.
Medicaid covers three million Ohioans, including pregnant women, children, seniors, and people with disabilities. Medicaid covers more than half of births in Ohio.
The eligibility for Medicaid benefits was expanded during the previous administration to include those living at 138% of the poverty line.
In Ohio, this refers to someone earning $21,000 or less per year. The expansion extended medical insurance to 750,000 more Ohioans. Federal funds covered 90% of the expansion group’s expenses.
With federal funding and potential cuts uncertain, Ohio’s proposed state budget allows for the elimination of the “expansion group” from the Medicaid program.
ODM Director Maureen Corcoran told lawmakers this week that even a 5% reduction in federal funding for the expansion group would cost the state $390 million per year.
“In my personal opinion, I fully expect the general assembly to reconvene, as it has in the past when Ohio has experienced major financial crises.
“Both the governor and the leadership have come together to decide what to do,” Corcoran told the House of Representatives Medicaid Committee on Tuesday.
“This provides an assurance that the state will not be subjected to massive financial impact without some ability to respond to it.”
ODM estimated a federal match of more than $30 billion for fiscal year 2026. If recipients are removed from the program, Democrats warn that health-care costs will rise and hospitals may close.
They also say there could be serious consequences for nursing homes. According to the Associated Press, the federal government spent $880 billion on Medicaid programs in 2023.
