Republican Attack On Americans: Gutting Medicaid

Republican Attack On Americans: Gutting Medicaid

House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) wants Americans to think of his Medicaid plan as “welfare reform.” That’s politically clever, I suppose — most people have been conditioned not to like “welfare,” and to love “reform” — but as Matt Yglesias explained this morning, it’s a scam.

[P]eople are supposed to think Medicaid is that “bad” kind of government spending, the one that goes to shiftless black folks not hard-working Americans like you and me and Paul Ryan. […]

This is mostly a program for the elderly and the disabled. It’s the main way we finance long-term care in this country. If you don’t directly benefit from it, you very likely have a parent or grandparent who does and whose financial needs will simply tend to fall on you if the program is cut. Meanwhile, in terms of the “welfare” aspect of Medicaid by far the largest set of poor people it covers are poor children. Is Ryan’s view that these kids should have worked harder to have rich parents? Poor kids tend to struggle with a lot of problems and are in many ways disadvantaged in the competitive economy by the time they’re out of diapers. It seems to me that investing in their basic health care is a no brainer way of leveling the playing field somewhat and ensuring that the country is making the most of our human resources.

Steve Benen adds:

“The key takeaway here is that House Republicans believe seniors, people with disabilities, and low-income children have had it too easy, for too long. It’s time to show these ne’er-do-wells some “tough love,” slashing their health benefits, and directing those funds where they belong — in the hands of millionaires and large corporations in the form of tax cuts.”

Ryan’s roadmap is a Koch brothers wet dream.

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