Statement on New Medicaid Block Grants Policy

The Trump administration said on Thursday that it would allow states to cap Medicaid spending for many poor adults, a major shift long sought by conservatives that gives states the option of reducing health benefits for millions who gained coverage through the program under the Affordable Care Act, reports the New York Times. Sandy Santana, Executive Director of Children’s Rights, issued this statement:

“The Trump administration’s recently issued guidelines for Medicaid waivers and block grants will result in new levels of suffering and insecurity for America’s poor. The guidelines will particularly affect low income families, many of which are barely surviving under the current rules. Cuts in vital benefits for parents, grandparents and other adults will pull them deeper into poverty. This puts children at risk of homelessness or of being removed from their families and put into an already overburdened child welfare system. Meanwhile, the new rule chopping benefits for 19-20 year olds will do grave harm to young people aging out of the system, who are already at greater risk of unemployment, homelessness and poverty. The consequences of this misguided policy will do damage for generations.”