As budget negotiations heat up in Washington, Medicaid has emerged as a key target for cost-cutting measures. With policymakers looking to trim federal spending while maintaining commitments to Social Security and Medicare,

Before implementing integration strategies more broadly, policy makers should first recognize and consider the health, social, and community living support needs of the 4.6 million dual-eligible individuals younger than age 65.

The House of Representatives is gearing up to vote on a budget bill, endorsed by President Trump, that would fulfill most of Trump’s legislative priorities. The bill includes tax breaks for the wealthy partially paid for by steep cuts to Medicaid and SNAP benefits.

Medicaid is the fourth-biggest spending item in the federal budget. And unlike the three items ahead of it (Social Security, Medicare, defense spending) it serves poor people exclusively. Historically, those sorts of programs have been the toughest to defend against legislators eager to slash funds.

Now Medicaid work requirements may be coming back soon as part of a proposed $2.3 trillion spending cut to the program. Trump said he wouldn’t touch Medicaid but then endorsed a plan that included deep cuts. This does not bode well for Millie or so many others.

Adults with incomes above the federal poverty level who are enrolled in New Hampshire’s Medicaid expansion plan, known as the Granite Advantage Health Care Program, would be required to pay up to 5 percent of their income toward their health plan costs, according to a presentation state officials made Friday to a House committee.