By West Virginia Sen. Jim Justice (R) says he is a “no” on the amendment proposed by Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) to stop able-bodied adults without dependent children from receiving the 9-to-1 federal Medicaid matching share, a proposal that would reduce federal Medicaid spending by an additional $313 billion on top of what’s already in the GOP megabill.
Justice said he’s worried about political repercussions if Republicans go much further in cutting Medicaid spending — revealing that Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) isn’t the only Republican senator worried that Medicaid cuts could boomerang politically on the party.
“We got in a situation where really our hospitals were really worried,” he said. “A lot of folks here don’t know what a rural hospital really is, but I do know. And I know that in West Virginia, if we don’t watch out, you could very well lose a bunch of rural hospitals.”
“It just seems like we’ve taken it as far as I’m comfortable taking it,” he said of Medicaid spending cuts.
“And now we’re taking it to another level,” he said of Scott’s proposal to bar new enrollees into Medicaid in states that expanded the program from getting the generous 90-percent federal match.
“Here’s the thing I’m the most concerned about and that is I am hung up on keeping our majorities,” he said.
“At the end of all this, there is a name or a family, you know. And if you don’t watch out, you’re going to alienate them, and when you alienate them, we’re going to go right back to the minority,” he warned.
Live updates: GOP stalls for time in vote-a-rama while awaiting key ruling on Trump megabill
The Senate will vote on the amendment as part of its vote-a-rama, which is in its 12th hour.
Scott has expressed confidence that his amendment will pass, but Justice’s decision to vote “no” strikes a significant blow to its chances of being adopted to President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act.