Today, 61 years ago, Medicare and Medicaid were created to expand access to affordable healthcare for Americans, including seniors, families, children, and people with disabilities. Despite repeatedly promising Americans that they would protect Medicaid and Medicare, Donald Trump, JD Vance, and Republicans have made massive cuts to these safety net programs that millions of seniors and working families rely on to make ends meet.
Trump and Republicans cut Medicaid by nearly $1 TRILLION — the largest cut to healthcare in history — which is projected to leave 15 million people uninsured when combined with other changes. Just this week, the Trump-Vance administration announced it would end Medicare Part D subsidies, raising prescription drug costs for more than 11 million Americans. Even before this latest move from the administration, about one in five Medicare enrollees said they are “very worried” about affording their prescription drugs.
It’s no wonder healthcare costs top the list of voters’ priorities for the midterms. More than six in 10 adults say they are worried about affording healthcare costs for themselves and their families.
In response, DNC Rapid Response Director Kendall Witmer released the following statement:
“For over 60 years, Medicare and Medicaid have helped millions of seniors, children, families, and people with disabilities get affordable healthcare. Now, Donald Trump, JD Vance, and Republicans are turning their backs on Americans by cutting Medicare and Medicaid, forcing families to grapple with skyrocketing medical bills, prescription drug costs, and insurance premiums — or even losing healthcare coverage completely — all to give even bigger tax breaks to their billionaire backers. Democrats are fighting back against Republican cuts to healthcare to protect Medicaid and Medicare — and voters will remember who stood up for their healthcare in November.”
REMINDER: More than half of Americans said they could not consistently afford healthcare in 2025, and more than a third of American families already have medical debt because of rising healthcare costs. Trump and his administration now want Americans to take out loans for medical bills they can’t pay after they made healthcare even more expensive for tens of millions of Americans.
