Members of Congress who represent West Virginia refuse to publicly comment on whether they’ll work with Democrats on reversing Medicaid cuts.
With a new majority in Congress, Democratic leaders say they plan to help people afford healthcare by undoing massive Medicaid cuts that were part of the spending law, known as the “Big Beautiful Bill,” that passed under Republican control last year.
An estimated 40,000 to 75,000 Medicaid-covered West Virginians will lose health insurance by 2028, due to new work requirements and more frequent renewals.
All members of West Virginia’s Congressional delegation — Sen. Jim Justice, Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, Congressperson Riley Moore and Congressperson Carol Miller — voted in favor of the spending law. Almost one-third of their constituents rely on Medicaid.
None of them responded to multiple requests to answer questions about working with Democrats and their positions on repealing the cuts.
Prior to passage of the law, Republicans said the Medicaid changes were meant to get rid of fraud, waste and abuse.
Moore said the bill protected Medicaid and only people who didn’t want to work would lose coverage. Justice made similar comments.
In explaining her support, Capito said she’d talked with hospitals and wanted to get rid of fraud and add the work requirement.
Miller praised the law for its tax cuts and frequently pens op-eds about her support for rural hospitals.
But because of the law all of them supported, many rural hospitals are now having to downsize.
And only 2.5% of the nearly $1 trillion the bill cuts from Medicaid was aimed at fraud, waste and abuse — most often committed by healthcare providers, not patients. Most adults on Medicaid are working.
The Urban Institute and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation note that coverage losses will make it harder for people to get healthcare, including preventive care and treatment for chronic conditions, making it more difficult to work.
The law is also expected to cut jobs and close hospitals, filling emergency rooms and free clinics.
Earlier this week, Capito posted on X about the “Big Beautiful Bill” and one part of it related to healthcare, the Rural Health Transformation Program fund.
Tuesday, when health officials announced West Virginia’s year two rural health fund award of $202 million, she said she was pleased to see the announcement, which she said wouldn’t be possible without the law.
Members of Congress tacked on that $50 billion fund to the bill after intense lobbying by hospitals. And while Capito had said that fund and help for hospitals was part of the reason she supported it, only a small fraction of the fund benefits hospitals, and hospitals now say they are having to cut services because of the law.
That $50 billion is also temporary, while the Medicaid cuts, unless reversed by Congress, are permanent.
The spending bill passed by West Virginia’s Congressional delegation cuts nearly $1 trillion from Medicaid across the country over ten years, including an estimated $6.5 billion in West Virginia. West Virginia’s hospitals alone are expected to lose $1 billion a year.
