skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Tuesday, February 18, 2025

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

N.Y.C. Council speaker calls on Mayor Eric Adams to resign; KY could do more to protect kids from accidental drug ingestion, shootings; OH food banks face fed funding uncertainty, DeWine budget cuts; Protesters say Trump administration actions 'cast aside democracy.'

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

On a Middle East visit, Sen. Richard Blumenthal rejects a Gaza takeover. President's Day protests erupt around the country against White House moves, and another aviation accident draws attention to recent FAA cuts.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Rural America struggles with opioids and homelessness in unexpected ways, Colorado's Lariat Ditch could help spur local recreation, and book deliveries revive rural communities hit by Hurricane Helene.

Medicaid faces big cuts; experts warn about potential blow to rural areas

play audio
Play

Thursday, January 16, 2025   

CLARIFICATION: An earlier version of this story noted the Children's Health Insurance Program as a component of Medicaid, before outlining Minnesota data. That version did not make clear that while under the same umbrella, there are differences. An update emphasizes Medicaid and CHIP when noting Minnesota data. (8:45 a.m. MST, Jan. 16, 2025)

In their pursuit of slashing government spending, Congressional Republicans are taking a hard look at Medicaid. But a new report shows how this public health program is preventing care access from further eroding in rural Minnesota and elsewhere.

The incoming Trump administration promises major budget cuts, and a House GOP proposal floats a nearly $2.5 trillion Medicaid reduction. But findings from Georgetown University's Center for Children and Families show people in rural areas are more likely than metro populations to receive health coverage through Medicaid.

Katy Kozhimannil, associate professor in the University of Minnesota School of Public Health, said its providers rely on it, too.

"Medicaid is an absolutely essential source of revenue for those hospitals to keep operating and to provide different types of services and additional training and support for clinicians," she said.

A key Medicaid component is the Children's Health Insurance Program. At 7%, the Georgetown report says Minnesota is among the states with the largest difference in the share of kids covered by Medicaid and CHIP when comparing smaller towns to urban centers. Some House Republicans insist these programs need reform to avoid a fiscal collapse. But skeptics say drastic changes are a way to offset a planned extension of federal tax cuts.

Joan Alker, executive director and co-founder of the Center for Children and Families at Georgetown University, called these budget proposals "horrifying," while suggesting the public might be caught off guard because the program wasn't really discussed on the campaign trail last fall.

"There was complete silence about it, despite the fact that it is the largest source of public coverage by far in the United States," she said. "It's also a very popular program with the voters of all political stripes."

Report authors stress the timing of the proposed cuts is especially bad as rural areas continue to grapple with hospital closures. 120 facilities have either closed or ceased offering inpatient services over the past decade. Many rural hospitals opt to shutter less lucrative units such as maternity wards. And the experts say Medicaid covers a majority of pregnancy care in smaller communities where these units still operate.

Disclosure: Georgetown University Center for Children & Families contributes to our fund for reporting on Children's Issues, Health Issues. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
Data from Penn Medicine finds as of January 2024, more than 30,000 people in the U.S. have received CAR T-cell therapy since it was approved for use in 2017. (Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Some New York doctors are working on new ways to treat advanced cancers. Chimeric Antigen Receptor, or CAR, T-cell therapy treats certain blood …


Health and Wellness

play sound

The incidence of drug overdose is decreasing in Indiana and one reason could be the efforts of an organization offering free training to anyone willin…

Social Issues

play sound

By Kim Kobersmith for The Daily Yonder.Broadcast version by Brett Peveto for South Carolina News Service for the Daily Yonder-Public News Service Coll…


More than 48% of Wyoming is public land, owned and managed by the federal government on behalf of U.S. residents. Several state bills this session were written to try to decrease the percentage. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

Wyoming is one of several Western states where some lawmakers arguing states should have more control of the federally managed public lands within the…

Environment

play sound

By S.E. Smith for Yes! Magazine.Broadcast version by Suzanne Potter for California News Service reporting for the Yes! Magazine-Public News Service …

A home burns in a Los Angeles neighborhood during recent wind-driven wildfires spreading throughout several Southern California communities. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

By Amy McDermott for the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science.Broadcast version by Mark Richardson for for California News Service reporting…

Social Issues

play sound

February is Library Lovers Month - and libraries across the Commonwealth are encouraging their long-time and new patrons to celebrate. Lisa Varga…

Social Issues

play sound

According to the Immigration Policy Tracking Project, the Trump administration has taken 130 actions on immigration so far this term. Groups in …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021