WA governor calls on Reps. Newhouse, Baumgartner to explain ‘dire’ cuts to Medicaid

Protesters with Indivisible Tri-Cities picket against Medicaid cuts outside U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse’s office in Richland, Wash., on May 14. Photo credit: Annette Cary, Ari-City Herald.

Gov. Bob Ferguson called on the state’s Republican congressional coalition to “explain their votes” on a massive federal spending bill that could result in 200,000 Washingtonians losing Medicaid coverage.

“The impacts in rural Washington and Central Washington — look, it’s profound across our state, but it’s especially acute there,” the Democratic governor said at a Thursday news conference with health care workers at Harborview Medical Center.

“And I would encourage individuals who live in those communities, in particular, to perhaps contact their member of Congress and ask them what the heck they’re doing,” Ferguson continued.

The Republican-controlled U.S. House early Thursday morning passed H.R. 1 — President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill.”

Among other large spending provisions, the bill makes changes to Medicaid enrollment and eligibility and could lead to more than 7 million people losing coverage as it cuts $700 billion from the program over a decade.

Medicaid is the joint state-federal government program that provides health insurance coverage to nearly 80 million Americans. That includes low-income residents, veterans, seniors and kids with disabilities.

Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson decried proposed congressional cuts to Medicaid during a May 22 news conference at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.

The Washington Medicaid program, called Apple Health, provides coverage for nearly 2 million, or about one in five residents.

About 800,000 of those are children. The program covers about three-in-five nursing home residents and three-in-eight people with disabilities.

The state spends about $21 billion on the program, Ferguson said, with $13 billion coming from the federal government.

Under House Republicans’ plans, Washington would lose out on about $2 billion in federal funds over the next four years, which Ferguson and health care workers say could lead to closing crucial hospital services in rural areas.

“It’s dire,” Ferguson said. “Hospitals will close, nursing homes will close. That will impact, as you heard, not just people who are on Medicaid, but Washingtonians all across our state. Right now, it is a four-alarm fire. It’s all hands on deck.”

Ferguson said Washington’s budget wouldn’t be able to cover the funding gap created by House Republicans’ resolution.

The House approved the resolution with 215 members in favor and 214 against.

Washington’s delegation voted on party lines, with Eastern Washington’s two Republican lawmakers — Reps. Dan Newhouse, of Sunnyside, and Michael Baumgartner, of Spokane — voting for the bill and the eight Western Washington Democrats voting against it.

The bill heads to the Senate for consideration. If it passes there, it would head to Trump’s desk for final approval.

Newhouse statement
In a statement, Newhouse praised the bill’s passage, highlighting the permanent extension of Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, SNAP reforms, tax benefits for the Tri-Cities’ fleet of small modular reactors and the ability to cut “waste, fraud and abuse” from programs such as Medicaid.

“We have made real, common-sense reforms to strengthen the integrity of Medicaid, protecting the program for low-income families, seniors and those with disabilities,” he said.

“By implementing work requirements for able-bodied adults without dependents, and preventing those here illegally from accessing the program, we are protecting Medicaid for those who truly need it most,” he continued.

Those work requirements go into effect at the end of 2026, and require childless adults without disabilities to work 80 hours a month to qualify for benefits. That would affect an estimated 22,000 who are enrolled in Newhouse’s district and an extra 29,000 in Baumgartner’s, according to the Center for American Progress. The center estimates 162 more people in Eastern Washington could die each year from treatable medical conditions.

Central Washington is the most reliant region in the state when it comes to Medicaid coverage.

Nearly three-quarters of children and one-quarter of adults in the region rely on Medicaid for health care. About 40% of pregnant women rely on the coverage for their babies’ births.

In total, about 37%, or nearly 300,000 Central Washington residents, are enrolled in the program. Nationwide, the program covers half of births and two-thirds of nursing home bills.

The majority of adults who rely on Medicaid have paying jobs, while others are going to school, caring for family members or are disabled or ill, according to testimonies provided by Central WA Families, a coalition of regional health care providers.

WA congressional response
Baumgartner praised the bill’s passage in a social media post, contrasting the two leadership styles in D.C. and Washington state.

“The same week that the leftist Democrat governor of Washington state signed into law the largest tax increase in our state’s history and joined his party’s fight to protect criminal illegal immigrants, Republicans in Congress voted for the biggest tax decrease in our nation’s history and delivered the improved border security that was the deciding factor in the national election that returned Donald Trump to the White House,” the he wrote.

But U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell rebuked the House Republicans in a statement, calling the move “Robin Hood in reverse: Robbing from the poor to give to the rich.”

“It’s sad that House Republicans ignored please from their own constituents, even those in their own party,” she said.

“State and local officials know we cannot afford Medicaid cuts. Medicaid is foundational to our health care system, is relied on by over 1.9 million Washingtonians and supports everything from rural hospitals to nursing homes to labor and delivery care. It’s time for every elected representative to stand up for patients and providers in their districts, protect Medicaid and stop raising health care costs on all of us,” Cantwell continued.

Eric Rosane, Tri-City Herald