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Supreme Court clears the way for Republican-friendly Texas voting maps; In Twin Cities, riverfront development rules get on the same page; Boston College Prison Education Program expands to women's facility; NYS bill requires timely state reimbursement to nonprofits; Share Oregon holiday spirit by donating blood.

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Trump escalates rhetoric toward Somali Americans as his administration tightens immigration vetting, while Ohio blocks expanded child labor hours and seniors face a Sunday deadline to review Medicare coverage.

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Native American tribes are left out of a new federal Rural Health Transformation Program, cold temperatures are burdening rural residents with higher energy prices and Missouri archivists says documenting queer history in rural communities is critical amid ongoing attacks on LGBTQ+ rights.

Report: Medicaid cuts would affect AZ rural maternity care

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Wednesday, May 21, 2025   

President Donald Trump is urging some of his colleagues to "not mess with Medicaid," even as hard-liners call for steeper cuts to the health care program covering more than 2 million Arizonans. The proposed cuts would affect some of the most vulnerable, including in rural areas.

A new report from Georgetown University's Center for Children and Families found Arizona is among the top 10 states with the highest percentage of rural women of childbearing age covered by Medicaid.

Jennifer J. Burns, director of government relations for the Children's Action Alliance, said Medicaid is vital and warned if Congress passes the cuts, it will jeopardize Arizona's already strained rural health care system.

"It doesn't take much for them not to be able to do labor and delivery," Burns pointed out. "We've faced a crisis of that down in Nogales just a couple years ago, where they were losing all of their doctors that could provide labor and delivery services at Holy Cross Hospital."

The report showed in recent years, many rural hospitals across the country have had to close their doors and the majority of those still open are not able to offer obstetric care.

Joan Alker, executive director of the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families, said lawmakers could be looking at making the largest cuts in Medicaid's history. Alker explained while much of the focus has been on low-income people who could lose coverage, cuts could also hurt hospitals' finances, especially those serving rural patients.

"It doesn't matter who their health insurer is. If they have private insurance, employer insurance, but there's no facility, then they can't safely give birth," Alker stressed. "That's why these issues are so consequential."

The report found while most women of childbearing age live in metropolitan areas, a higher share of rural women in the age group rely on Medicaid.

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


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