Trump warns Republicans on Medicaid cuts in tax bill

President Donald Trump on Tuesday warned House Republicans, “Don’t f— around with Medicaid,” as he pressed them during a closed-door meeting to pass a major tax bill, a source told CNBC.

Trump’s blunt message came during a visit to Capitol Hill.

Movement on the tax bill has been hampered by a small number of Trump’s fellow Republicans in the House of Representatives, including a group that wants cuts to the massive Medicaid health-care coverage program, which covers primarily low-income people.

Those Republicans also want work requirements added to the eligibility requirements for Medicaid.

Critics say work requirements would create a bureaucratic nightmare, forcing the government to try to verify and track the employment status and job searching efforts of tens of millions of people.

Medicaid, which is jointly financed by the federal government and individual states, and the smaller Children’s Health Insurance Program, cover nearly 80 million Americans.

A tracking poll in April by the health policy research group KFF found that 61% of Americans oppose major cuts to staff and spending at federal health agencies.

Other lawmakers who have been stumbling blocks to passing the bill include Republicans from New York and California who want even higher increases to a proposed hike in the deduction for state and local taxes, and others who want cuts to the federal deficit from the bill.

“Let it go,” Trump told members of the so-called SALT Caucus, according to three lawmakers who were in the meeting, NBC News reported. 

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., hopes to pass the bill before the upcoming Memorial Day weekend.