Medicaid is a joint federal-state program that provides health care to more than 70 million Americans. States have broad flexibility to finance its nonfederal portion. Since Medicaid’s inception, states have used provider taxes to help offset unpaid costs for critical Medicaid services, including behavioral health, long-term, and emergency care. Taxing providers, including nursing homes and hospitals, lifts the burden off taxpayers and provides access to care for those in need.
Restricting states’ ability to tax health providers will impose devastating financing gaps in the Medicaid program that will severely impact rural health systems. Further restrictions would cause children, pregnant patients, and disabled people to lose access to their coverage. Older populations living in nursing homes would also risk losing their health care coverage.
We urge Congress to reject any proposed changes to states’ ability to help fund their Medicaid programs through provider taxes and care for our nation’s most vulnerable individuals, including children, parents, pregnant patients, people with disabilities, and seniors.
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