WASHINGTON — More than two dozen people were arrested inside a U.S. House office building after disrupting a budget markup, where GOP lawmakers are debating substantial cuts to Medicaid and other health care programs to help pay for President Donald Trump’s massive tax package.
A total of 26 people were taken into custody for illegally demonstrating outside the House Energy and Commerce Committee budget hearing on charges of crowding, obstructing and incommoding, U.S. Capitol Police confirmed to the Deseret News.
Dozens of protesters gathered outside the hearing room around 1 p.m. EDT as the committee met for a scheduled markup to advance its portion of the budget resolution designed to advance Trump’s agenda on taxes, border and other priorities.
While the plan does not include some of the most controversial proposals initially discussed among GOP lawmakers, it contains several new requirements that are likely to lead to people losing their Medicaid coverage.
One of the most significant changes proposed in the framework is to implement new work requirements for Medicaid beneficiaries. The bill would require able-bodied adults without dependents to work at least 80 hours a month or complete some other activity such as community service.
As part of budget instructions, the committee was tasked with finding at least $880 billion in spending cuts to help pay for the $4.5 trillion in tax cut extensions that Republicans hope to approve before the end of the year.
With the proposed changes, Republicans on the committee have exceeded those numbers — finding more than $900 billion in savings, a source familiar with the details told the Deseret News.
Protesters lined the hallways wearing “Hands off Medicaid” T-shirts and hats as they blew whistles. Their chants drowned out opening statements inside the hearing room.
Minutes into the markup, Capitol Police officers offered a warning that onlookers would be arrested if they did not cease their interruptions. Moments later, officers began clearing the hallways.
It took officers about 20 minutes to clear the protesters, while several activists remained in the hallways as they complied with orders to remain quiet.
Less than an hour after the markup began, Democratic Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Brian Schatz of Hawaii, and Tina Smith of Minnesota walked into the committee room to deliver “thousands and thousands” of written letters from constituents who depend on Medicaid coverage.
“Direct messages from constituents who have said, ‘This is outrageous,’” Booker said outside the hearing room. “Who opened up their pride, who shared their most personal, intimate stories about how they rely on Medicaid to keep their family above water and to keep their family members alive. And (Republicans are) threatening to cut those resources from millions and millions of Americans. This is outrageous, and none of us should be treating this like just another normal day in Washington.”
If the proposed cuts are advanced, preliminary estimates predict at least 8.6 million people would lose Medicaid coverage over the next decade, with savings reaching at least $715 billion by 2034, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
The proposal to increase work requirements carves out some exceptions, such as for pregnant women, and would only apply to those who are between 19 and 64 years old. Individual states would be responsible for enforcing work hours.
The legislation would also include new restrictions on how Medicaid funds can be used, including bans on gender transition procedures for children under 18 as well as prohibitions on coverage “for individuals whose citizenship, nationality, or immigration status has not been verified.”
Those changes, among several others, come after months of negotiations on how to reform the health insurance program and cut costs without losing support from moderate Republicans. Still, Democrats are likely to accuse Republicans of stripping millions of Americans of their health care coverage to secure Trump’s agenda.