Post Reports The health care debate behind the government shutdown
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Oct 1, 2025 Paige Winfield Cunningham, a national health reporter for The Washington Post, dives into the contentious health care debates fueling the recent government shutdown. She clarifies the Democrats' push for expanded ACA subsidies, aiming to make affordable health care accessible. Cunningham discusses the implications of proposed Medicaid reforms, detailing how stricter eligibility could lead to millions losing coverage. She also highlights the urgency for subsidy extensions before impending expirations, outlining potential enrollment drops and rising premiums if no action is taken.
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Shutdown Driven By Subsidy Fight
- Democrats used federal funding deadlines to force a vote to extend temporary pandemic-era ACA subsidy expansions.
- They refused a short-term funding bill unless Republicans agreed to make those subsidies permanent.
Medicaid Cuts Reduce Enrollment
- The GOP's Medicaid changes tighten eligibility and add work and verification requirements that lower enrollment projections.
- The CBO estimates about 7.5 million fewer people will be enrolled in Medicaid after ten years because of those rules.
New Rules Create Administrative Barriers
- New rules force more frequent eligibility checks and add an 80-hour monthly work or volunteer requirement for some enrollees.
- These procedural barriers increase the chance people lose coverage even without benefit cuts.