Democrats aim to unite behind opposition to Medicaid cuts

The Democratic Party is coalescing around a strategy of attacking Republicans for planning to cut Medicaid spending, a move that could unite the fractured party and pay dividends in the 2026 midterm elections. 

Democrats are engaging in a “Day of Action” across the country on Tuesday, led by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), to protest cuts to the Medicaid program implied in the Republican-led House budget resolution passed in late February.

The House budget resolution calls for $880 billion in deficit reduction over 10 years from the section of the budget overseen by the Energy and Commerce Committee. Republicans have maintained that the word “Medicaid” does not appear in the House resolution, but they would need to reduce Medicaid to hit the $880 billion target for programs under the committee’s jurisdiction, given that President Donald Trump has ruled out changes to Medicare and other entitlement programs.

The GOP is weighing policy options, such as work requirements and Medicaid provider taxes, that would cut federal funding for the program without disrupting enrollee benefits. 

But Democrats are clinging to the defense of Medicaid as their chief health policy position as infighting continues among party leadership, particularly in the Senate as factions within the party question whether Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) should remain in his leadership position. 

Jeffries, whose party has been put on the back foot by the Trump administration’s advantage on cultural matters such as immigration and transgender ideology, struck an aggressive tone on defending Medicaid.

He said the party would unite to “aggressively push back against the diabolical Republican scheme to enact the largest Medicaid cut in our nation’s history.”

The shift in focus toward Medicaid might be what the Democratic base is craving.

A CNN poll released Sunday found that the Democratic Party’s favorability rating dropped to a record low of 29%. More than half, 57%, of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents say the party should focus on blocking the GOP agenda instead of reaching across the aisle for policy wins. 

Popularity of Medicaid

Although it takes up a significant portion of the federal budget, Medicaid is a popular government program, even for Republicans. 

According to the left-leaning health think tank KFF, more than half of Americans say they, a friend, or a relative have been on Medicaid at some point in their life. 

Nearly 8 in 10, 77%, have either a very or somewhat favorable opinion of Medicaid, according to a KFF poll earlier this month. Nearly all respondents, 97%, said Medicaid is either very or somewhat important to the health and well-being of their community. 

When it comes to cuts, only 17% of people, regardless of party, want to decrease Medicaid funding. That includes one-third of Republicans. 

Of Trump 2024 voters, 43% said in the KFF poll that they want to keep Medicaid funding at current levels. More than 1 in 5, 22%, said they wanted to increase federal Medicaid spending. 

But there has been mixed messaging from the Trump administration on Medicaid. 

Trump has said multiple times he will “love and cherish” Medicaid, but he has also backed House GOP efforts to advance all of his first-100-day agenda items, including the budget resolution. 

Dr. Mehmet Oz, Trump’s nominee for Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, during his Senate confirmation hearing last week, said he also cherishes Medicaid, having worked with Medicaid patients extensively during his tenure at Columbia University’s medical center. 

Oz also promised Sens. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) that he would travel with them to counties with high Medicaid populations to hear directly from constituents about the importance of the program. 

Vulnerable states for Republicans

Several deep-red states have comparatively large Medicaid populations as well, opening up a vulnerability for Republicans in the House and certain key Senate positions. 

Although, as of 2022, New Mexico has the highest percentage of Medicaid enrollees at 33.6%, Republican-led Louisiana has the second-largest percentage, at 32.4%, of people enrolled in the Medicaid program. 

West Virginia is fourth highest, at 28.4%, Kentucky is in fifth, at 28.2%, and Arkansas is in sixth, at 27.4%. 

Both House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) hail from Louisiana, which makes cuts to Medicaid a particularly thorny issue as they face reelection next year. 

Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) has been a central player in Trump’s health agenda, securing the confirmation of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on several conditions. 

Cassidy, who is often depicted as a centrist Republican when juxtaposed to the more populist wing of the party, could be in jeopardy for his 2026 reelection if he backs cuts to Medicaid, considering the high share of enrollees in his state. 

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Although Cassidy’s Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee does not have jurisdiction over Medicaid policy, he also is a leading voice in the Senate Finance Committee, which oversees the Medicaid program. 

Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), who is also up for reelection in 2026, also has many constituents enrolled in Medicaid. Capito sits on the Senate AppropriationsCommittee and is chairwoman of the subcommittee that oversees the budget for the Department of Health and Human Services.