Where do we stand? The 60th Anniversary of Medicaid
- Amplify NH
- Jul 28
- 5 min read
This Wednesday, July 30th, marks the 60th anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid. Instead of celebrating a momentous milestone, many Granite Staters, as well as millions across the country, are grappling with whether or not they’ll still have access to the health care they need.
Thanks to federal cuts to Medicaid in the recently passed “One Big Beautiful Bill,” as well as additional cuts put forward in New Hampshire’s state budget, vulnerable Granite Staters are put at risk. Let’s take a look at what these cuts will look like here in New Hampshire:
State and Federal Cuts Jeopardize Access to Care for Granite Staters
In reality, Republican’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” is anything but. The bill enacts the biggest cut to Medicaid in U.S. history. Nearly $1 trillion over the next decade will be stripped from Medicaid, leaving millions of Americans without healthcare. The bill is expected to pull an estimated 18% of New Hampshire’s federal baseline spending for Medicaid, nearly $3 billion and 186,000 people in New Hampshire left without coverage over the coming decade.
“I laugh, because if I don’t laugh, I cry,” said Michelle Lawrence of Henniker on her reaction to learning about the cuts. 16 years ago Michelle was diagnosed with a chronic form of cancer called T-cell lymphocytic leukemia, and after loosing her job as a result of her cancer has relied on Medicaid coverage for access to life saving care ever since. She stated that Medicaid “has been a major lifeline for me. That has enabled me and a lot of other cancer patients like me to be able to access the treatment needed in the past few years. I’m here. I’m alive and a contributing member of society. … Without Medicaid, I wouldn’t be able to afford my treatments or go to the doctor.”
As a result of this bill, as a result of Republicans in Congress and President Trump, tens of thousands of hardworking Granite Staters just like Michelle will lose access to their healthcare.
But congressional Republicans are not the only reason New Hampshire can expect big changes to Medicaid. Thanks to the new state budget recently passed by NH Republicans and signed into law by Gov Ayotte, Granite Staters on Medicaid can expect new premiums, higher drug copays as soon as next year.
On New Hampshire’s older population the effects of these cuts could be even worse. Over 70,000 older adults in New Hampshire are enrolled in Medicaid, and that number does not include the thousands of family caregivers who sacrifice much of their lives to care for their family members, often including their ability to work. Caregiving is not among the exemptions to the new federal work requirements. Therefore, not only are 70,000 older Granite Staters at risk of losing their care, their full-time family caregivers could lose their healthcare benefits as well.
Amid the chaos of the “Big Beautiful Bill”, healthcare providers are bracing for ramifications that stretch long past access to care alone. Not only will we see programs such as Medicaid hit hard by the cruel cuts of the bill, the bill puts programs like Medicare at risk as well.
“We celebrated (in 2017) because we knew that millions of Americans were going to continue to have access to health care,” said Senator Shaheen, comparing the new cuts to Republicans’ failed attempt to repeal the Affordable Care Act in 2017. “Our colleagues in the Senate and the administration are celebrating (now) because millions of Americans are going to lose their access to health care.”
Rural Communities Set to be Hit Hardest
“When an urban hospital closes or cuts back programs, you just go to the other hospital that’s five miles away. In our community, you’re driving hours.” - Tom Mee, CEO of North Country Health
Access to medical care is already difficult for many people living in New Hampshire’s rural communities. Hard to reach hospitals and doctor’s offices, combined with lower numbers of specialists and offered services means that patients could be forced to travel hours away, forcing them to take off work and potentially lose income, just to seek care. The concentration of primary care providers in rural NH communities is already significantly lower than the rest of the state. Thanks to the recent legislation passed at both the federal and state level, New Hampshire should expect that number to decrease even further. Cuts to Medicaid are also expected to further destabilize other aspects of the already challenging rural health system, including the very few rural hospitals that serve these communities.
17.1% of all New Hampshire Medicaid recipients live in Coös County, all of which is dependent on just three hospitals: Upper Connecticut Valley Hospital, Androscoggin Valley Hospital, and Weeks Medical Center. All three of which are designated critical access hospitals by the federal government, meaning each is far away enough from any other hospital that the government has determined they’re essential to ensure that an area has access to health care. About 15% of patients at all three hospitals are on Medicaid. Without Medicaid to act as coverage, these hospitals will be forced to absorb the cost of life saving treatment for patients who are not able to pay for care. With the added financial strain rural hospitals will be forced to cut services or risk closing all together, both would be detrimental to hardworking people living in rural New Hampshire.
Tom Mee, CEO of North Country Health, the parent company of all three county hospitals, said that if they by financial necessity they are forced to, they will have to cut services offered at their hospitals, most likely starting with women’s health, including OB-GYNs and baby deliveries, and behavioral health, including psychiatry and substance use disorder. He noted that the results would be disastrous: “If we’re not able to deliver babies in Coös County, pregnant women and neonates will die,” he said. “It’s a fact.” He is not alone; representatives from Monadnock Community Hospital, Valley Regional Hospital, Ammonoosuc Community Health Services, and Mid-State Health Center, echoed similar concerns about their patients.
The bottom line is clear; Medicaid cuts endanger everyone in New Hampshire. Regardless of whether you receive health care coverage from Medicaid, Medicare, or private insurance, everyone in New Hampshire will be affected by these cruel and severe cuts to Medicaid. Republicans in the state house, the governor's office, congress, and the white house have put all of our health care at risk. New Hampshire deserves better.
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Thank you,
Ryan Mahoney
Executive Director