Reconciliation Package Heads to President Trump’s Desk

Sarah Hohman, Director of Government Affairs, NARHC

After a marathon few days of both moderates and conservative fiscal hawks in the House indicating concerns over Medicaid reforms and increased spending, respectively, the legislation ultimately passed by a vote of 218-214 with no changes from the Senate version passed earlier this week.

Therefore, the “big, beautiful bill” will head to President Trump’s desk for his signing which will likely occur tomorrow.

Republicans in Congress and President Trump will celebrate this legislation for its extension of tax cuts and its massive increase in spending for immigration enforcement. They have categorized Medicaid and Affordable Care Act changes as simply a crackdown on waste, fraud, and abuse.

These policy changes, however, are estimated to result in a loss of health insurance coverage for nearly 12 million Americans by 2034.

As these reforms are implemented, NARHC will monitor the impacts of the legislation on the financial viability of the 5,600 Rural Health Clinics, who often serve as the only providers in their underserved communities. We will continue to communicate to policymakers ways we can maintain and improve access to care in our rural communities.

I want to express my sincere appreciation for the RHC community’s advocacy over the last several months. You have sent thousands of messages to your Members of Congress, hosted roundtables to highlight the impacts of these Medicaid changes and traveled to DC to participate in direct advocacy on Capitol Hill.

While this legislation is not the outcome we fought for, RHCs have been relentless in ensuring that the Members who represent your states and districts are aware of the anticipated impacts.

A full summary of the bill’s finalized provisions will be shared soon, including further details on the $50 billion Rural Health Transformation Program designed to blunt some of the negative impacts of the bill on rural and safety-net providers.

If you have any questions, please reach out to me at Sarah.Hohman@narhc.org.

Sincerely,

Sarah Hohman, MPH, CRHCP
Director of Government Affairs
National Association of Rural Health Clinics