Gov. Kathy Hochul on Monday, May 19, updated New Yorkers on the “harmful effects” of several healthcare provisions already passed by the House Ways & Means and Energy & Commerce committees for the Republican budget reconciliation bill.

Hochul warned that these provisions collectively amount to an annual loss of nearly $13.5 billion for New Yorkers and the healthcare sector, jeopardizing healthcare access for millions while imperiling the State’s hospitals and other healthcare providers.

“House Republicans are unrelenting in their pursuit to slash critical safety net programs like Medicaid that millions of New Yorkers rely on,” Gov. Hochul said. “I’ll say it again, no one State can backfill these massive cuts – our Republican congressional members must speak out and push back to protect New Yorkers, now.”

Hochul said the provisions as currently written will lead to “substantial changes in how the critical public insurance programs Medicaid and the Essential Plan are funded and administered across the state.”

According to the text of the bill language, as passed by Ways & Means, more than half (50 %) of Essential Plan funding — more than $7.5 billion — would be slashed, threatening the future of the program, and causing hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers to lose coverage.

She said that the same Ways & Means text would shift almost $3 billion of costs to the State, and result in billions of dollars in cuts to the State’s healthcare providers.

In addition to the devastating financial losses to the Essential Plan, the text of the bill language as passed by Energy & Commerce requires states to impose stricter work reporting requirements and onerous verification processes for Medicaid, both of which will significantly increase the administrative burden of the program, thus making coverage more difficult to access.

The governor said the Republican bill would result in nearly 1.5 million New Yorkers losing coverage and becoming uninsured.

She said the Republican bill would also eliminate critical funding mechanisms long used to support healthcare providers, place enormous strain on the healthcare system, and trigger widespread impacts across local economies.

The State anticipates an additional fiscal impact of more than $3 billion due to the Energy & Commerce language, including about $500 million in new administrative costs alone.

New York State Health Commissioner Dr. James McDonald said, “The proposed changes to federal health care funding would have serious consequences for New York State. Losing coverage for nearly 1.5 million New Yorkers would lead to significantly worse health outcomes and put immense strain on our health care system. We remain committed to working with all levels of government to protect access to quality, affordable care for all New Yorkers.”

Senate Minority Leader Charles “Chuck” Schumer said, “This is as cruel and heartless as it gets. Trump and House Republicans want to kick 1.5 million New Yorkers off their health insurance and rip away $13.5 billion from NY’s hospitals and healthcare economy so they can have bigger tax breaks for billionaires & corporations.

“NY House Republicans promised for months they would protect Medicaid, but now New Yorkers know the truth: they never intended to keep that promise, which confirms it,” he said. “This isn’t targeting waste and fraud, this is a rushed plan to bankroll Trump’s tax breaks for the ultra-rich, paid for by ripping away healthcare for New Yorkers.

“Hospitals and nursing homes will shutter, premiums will go up, families will suffer, and health care workers will lose their jobs,” Schumer warned. “NY House Republicans need to stand up to Trump and stand up for New York, and stop the largest cut to healthcare in American history.”

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand said, “This proposal would be catastrophic for the millions of Americans who rely on Medicaid. Republicans should be focused on bringing down the cost of essentials; instead, they are making health care harder to access and more expensive.

“They have proposed work requirements for Medicaid that ignore the fact that most Medicaid recipients already work, and would cost New York State an estimated $500 million to administer and enforce – all for minimal cost savings,” she added. “The Republican bill puts kids at risk of losing health care through Medicaid and CHIP and puts the future of our State’s many rural hospitals in jeopardy. This is an unacceptable piece of legislation, and I will be doing everything in my power to stop it from passing.”

House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said, “Across our great State, millions rely on Medicaid for life-saving and life-sustaining healthcare coverage.

Under the Republican plan, 1.5 million New Yorkers would lose their insurance, including over 60,000 residents of the Eighth Congressional District, as part of a toxic scheme to enact massive tax cuts for billionaires like Elon Musk,” he said. “Nursing homes will close, hospitals will shut down, and Community Health Centers will lose funding. It is time for House Republicans in New York to come up with the courage to stand up for their constituents and join with Democrats to prevent this devastating attack on the healthcare that New Yorkers depend on to survive.”

Rep. Yvette D. Clarke said, “My Republican colleagues are so determined to gift tax breaks to their billionaire donors that they’ll strip healthcare from millions of Americans just to fund them. Let’s be clear: New Yorkers will lose their lives from the proposed cuts to Medicaid and other critical safety nets.

“Families won’t be able to afford to put food on the table, much less access the care they depend on to survive,” said the daughter of Jamaican immigrants, who represents the 9th Congressional District in Brooklyn.

“For the safety and health of our communities and those across the nation, Congress has a moral responsibility to draw a line in the sand and not allow these cruel cuts to pass,” added Clarke, chair of the Congressional Black Caucus.