Trump tax law could cause Medicare cuts if Congress doesn't act, CBO
says
[August 16, 2025]
WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal budget deficits caused by President
Donald Trump’s tax and spending law could trigger automatic cuts to
Medicare if Congress does not act, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget
Office reported Friday.
The CBO estimates that Medicare, the federal health insurance program
for Americans over age 65, could potentially see as much as $491 billion
in cuts from 2027 to 2034 if Congress does not act to mitigate a 2010
law that forces across-the-board cuts to many federal programs once
legislation increases the federal deficit. The latest report from CBO
showed how Trump's signature tax and spending law could put new pressure
on federal programs that are bedrocks of the American social safety net.
Trump and Republicans pledged not to cut Medicare as part of the
legislation, but the estimated $3.4 trillion that the law adds to the
federal deficit over the next decade means that many Medicare programs
could still see cuts. In the past, Congress has always acted to mitigate
cuts to Medicare and other programs, but it would take some bipartisan
cooperation to do so.
Democrats, who requested the analysis from CBO, jumped on the potential
cuts.
[to top of second column]
|
 “Republicans knew their tax breaks
for billionaires would force over half a trillion dollars in
Medicare cuts — and they did it anyway,” said Rep. Brendan F. Boyle,
the top Democrat on the House Budget Committee, in a statement.
“American families simply cannot afford Donald Trump’s attacks on
Medicare, Medicaid, and Obamacare.”
Hospitals in rural parts of the country are already
grappling with cuts to Medicaid, which is available to people with
low incomes, and cuts to Medicare could exacerbate their shortfalls.
As Republicans muscled the bill through Congress and are now selling
it to voters back home, they have been highly critical of how CBO
has analyzed the bill. They have also argued that the tax cuts will
spur economic growth and pointed to $50 billion in funding for rural
hospitals that was included in the package.
All contents © copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved |
