As debate continues over how to close a $118 million funding gap in MaineCare, health providers, advocates and Medicaid recipients are bracing for uncertainty at the federal level.
The Republican majority in Congress is looking for cuts to make in an effort to fund President Donald Trump's tax agenda.
And Rep. Chellie Pingree, of Maine's first congressional district, said Medicaid has been targeted as a potential source for federal social service reductions.
Medicaid provides coverage to nearly 25% of Mainers, according to federal data. At a roundtable with Pingree in Portland on Tuesday, health advocates and Medicaid recipients said they fear the impacts could be devastating if the program is slashed.
York County Community Action Corporation operates Nasson Health Care, which is one of Maine's 18 community health centers. CEO Carter Friend said Maine's network of community health centers studied the impacts of a potential Medicaid cuts, focusing on a possible rollback of the Affordable Care Act Marketplace and Medicaid expansion.
The analysis shows 1,400 Nasson patients could lose coverage, and the health center would lose $7 million in revenue. Maintaining the current level of service, Friend said, would be difficult.
"We would not be able to do that with those types of cuts," he said. "The numbers simply don't work; it's not sustainable."
Statewide, the analysis estimates nearly 20,000 Maine adults would lose health coverage over the next three years, and health centers would collectively lose $118 million in revenue, Friend added.
Allina Diaz, an advocate with Maine Equal Justice, said the uncertainty is particularly concerning, as many Maine Care recipients rely on other food assistance and housing programs where cuts are also being discussed.
"A lot of our social safety net, [it's] kind of woven together," she said. "So typically if someone's having to use Medicaid, they're also having to use [Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program] SNAP, or maybe [Temporary Assistance for Needy Families] TANF or maybe Section 8. And I think in this moment where things are so unclear — and things go back and forth — it's hard to trust that you're going to have the services that you need."
Diaz said her daughter, who has Down's syndrome, has relied on MaineCare for physical and speech therapy. More than 35% of Maine children receive health care through Medicaid.
