Overview
- Public Citizen, which released its analysis Tuesday, identified 446 hospitals in 44 states and Washington, D.C., as at high risk of closure or service cuts tied to Medicaid and CHIP reductions.
- The law cuts federal support for Medicaid and CHIP by roughly $900 billion to $1 trillion over 10 years, with work requirements beginning in 2027 and new limits on how states finance Medicaid in 2028.
- The flagged hospitals together treated nearly seven million patients last year and employ about 275,000 direct care workers with close to 70,000 beds, in a system where Medicaid pays about one fifth of hospital bills.
- Rural facilities and hospitals that serve large shares of Black and Latino patients face the greatest risk, alongside many urban safety-net hospitals that rely heavily on public coverage.
- Hospitals have already begun layoffs and service reductions, with Alameda Health System and Trinity Health citing large projected losses, and leaders warn longer travel times and crowded ERs will follow if more units shut.