Trump to propose slashing Medicaid

President Donald Trump is expected to propose cutting $800 billion from Medicaid over 10 years in a budget plan to be released today that would slash spending on anti-poverty and other programs, US media reported.

The plans for the massive cut to Medicaid -- which funds health care for low-income and disabled people -- come as lawmakers from his Republican Party are battling to repeal and replace Obamacare, in which Medicare plays an important role.

The $800 billion cut to Medicaid is contingent on a health care bill passed in the House of Representatives earlier this month becoming law, The Washington Post on Sunday quoted people familiar with the plan as saying.

That bill to dismantle the Affordable Care Act -- as former president Barack Obama's signature health care law is called -- would cut federal support for Medicaid by more than $800 billion over a decade.

Medicaid's expansion under Obamacare extended health care coverage to some 11 million previously uninsured adults. Medicaid currently covers more than 70 million mainly low-income and disabled people.

The House bill would cut federal funding for the entire Medicaid program by 25 percent by 2026 and shift the burden to states, which would receive set amounts in the form of grants that would force them to reduce eligibility or cut benefits.

The American Medical Association issued a scathing criticism of the bill, warning that it would cause millions of Americans to lose their health care.

Some Republicans who also criticized the House bill say they oppose major cuts to Medicaid. The Senate is working on its own separate health care legislation.