As the race for the MAGA base heats up, 2024 Republicans have already shown where they stand on health care – spending years trying to slash Medicare, refusing to expand Medicaid, and pushing to repeal the Affordable Care Act – which would leave millions of Americans without health care coverage and send health care costs soaring.

Donald Trump campaigned on repealing the Affordable Care Act for years and proposed cuts to Medicare and Social Security programs every year he was in office. 

Kaiser Health News: “During his speech accepting the Republican nomination in July, Trump again promised to repeal Obamacare and alluded to ways his replacement would be better. And, by October, Trump promised that within his first 100 days in office he would repeal and replace Obamacare. During his final week of campaigning, he suggested asking Congress to come in for a special session to repeal the health care law quickly.”

New York Times: “The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court late Thursday to overturn the Affordable Care Act — a move that, if successful, would bring a permanent end to the health insurance program popularly known as Obamacare and wipe out coverage for as many as 23 million Americans.”

Washington Post: “His avowed stance, however, is at odds with Trump’s own record as president: Each of his White House budget proposals included cuts to Social Security and Medicare programs.”

Mike Pence has called the Affordable Care Act a “nightmare” and repeatedly called for cuts to Social Security and Medicare. 

Washington Post: “Vice President Pence forcefully defended on Thursday night the Trump administration’s plans to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, saying the law known as Obamacare is a ‘nightmare’ and that the administration is committed to ‘an orderly transition’ to a new health-care system.”

CNN: “BLITZER: ‘So, you are willing to cut – ‘PENCE: ‘I think it’s absolutely imperative.’ BLITZER: ‘What about Medicare?’ PENCE: ‘I think it’s absolutely imperative whether Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid.’ BLITZER: ‘So, you’re willing to cut in all three of those areas?’ PENCE: ‘Well, let me say, I believe that if we act in the near future, that we can through responsible reforms in the long-term. We can put our nation on a pathway towards fiscal solvency with regard to entitlements. We’re going to have to take some deep cuts in domestic spending.’”

While Floridians are already being crushed under sky-high health care costs in the state, more than a million Floridians could have their Medicaid coverage ripped away under DeSantis.

Spectrum News 13: “Studies show Florida hospital bills rank among the highest in the nation”

WUSF: “Study finds employees in Florida pay among the highest rates for health insurance”

Florida Politics: “As many as 1.75 million Floridians could lose Medicaid coverage once the state begins taking steps on April 1 to return its Medicaid program to pre-pandemic levels.”

As governor, Nikki Haley also refused to expand Medicaid to support South Carolinians in need of health insurance in the state, and now, she’s doubled down on her calls to put Medicare on the chopping block. 

NBC News: “Haley opposed efforts to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act (South Carolina remains just one of 11 states that hasn’t expanded Medicaid to allow more Americans to have health insurance).” 

NBC News: “She also defended the Paul Ryan budget plan of 2011 that would have transformed Medicare into a voucher/premium support system, and criticized then-presidential candidate Newt Gingrich for opposing that plan.” 

NHJournal: “On entitlement programs, [Nikki Haley] says ‘you have to look at entitlements.’ ‘Let’s not dig our head in the sand and say ‘we’re not going to do anything about entitlements,’ we have to.’”

Glenn Youngkin blasted Medicaid expansion as a “sad thing” and that he wants to “turn it back” – despite the more than 500,000 Virginians who receive health care coverage under the program.

Youngkin: “Well, the sad thing is that Medicaid was expanded, and it’s here… Friends, the sad thing is Medicaid expansion was done, and as much as we would like to turn it back, the reality is that’s going to be hard.” 

Kristi Noem repeatedly voted for bills that sought to repeal the Affordable Care Act, including the 2017 bill that would have resulted in an estimated 23 million more uninsured Americans.

Mitchell Republic: “‘I’d say probably the greatest accomplishment was repealing ‘Obamacare’ on the House floor,’ said Noem, R-S.D., when asked during a teleconference with South Dakota journalists Thursday to list her top accomplishment.”

Argus Leader: “Rep. Kristi Noem was among 217 legislators who voted Thursday in support of a proposal to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act.”

NPR: “GOP Health Plan Would Leave 23 Million More Uninsured, Budget Office Says”

Mike Pompeo also voted for bills to repeal the Affordable Care Act numerous times and supported Paul Ryan’s plans to end Medicare as we know it.

Pompeo: “I plan on keeping my promise to end this law. I hope my colleagues will do the same.”

The Undercurrent: “QUESTION: ‘How much money will we save by turning Medicare into a voucher system?’ POMPEO: ‘It’s significant. I don’t know the actual numbers, but the budget plan that congressman Ryan is going to get passed through the House of Representatives saves over $4.6 trillion over the next decade, so it’s a – look there’s always room to do more, but it’s a really good start.’”