Editor: 

In his recent letter to the editor, Congressman Rick Allen touts the accomplishments in the “One, Big Beautiful Bill.” He failed to mention many of the drastic consequences of the bill.  

He approved a cut of $1 trillion to federal funding of Medicaid. According to the Congressional Budget Office, this will mean 11.8 million people will lose their health coverage by 2034. The CBO says that an additional 5.1 million people will lose health coverage due to two policy changes that are outside this bill: changes to eligibility under the Affordable Care Act and the expiration of the ACA expanded premium tax credit. The result is 16.9 million people could lose coverage. 

The cuts to Medicaid funding have already had one disastrous effect. A hospital in Nebraska is closing its doors after 30 years because of the loss of Medicaid income. How many more rural hospitals will close? How many nursing homes will close? 

These changes will start to take place after the election in 2026 so Rep. Rick Allen can say that “he didn’t make these change.” But don’t be fooled, he voted for the bill.

Another disastrous effect of this bill is the addition of $4 trillion to the national debt. This will happen primarily due to tax breaks for billionaires. 

The bill provides a temporary $6,000 deduction for qualified seniors on their income taxes from 2025 to 2028 but it provides a permanent income tax cut for billionaires from 39.6% to 37% tax cut. 

The CBO says that because of $4 trillion added to the debt, the bill will trigger automatic cuts to Medicare of $500 billion: $45 billion in 2026 and $490 billion between 2027 and 2034.  Medicare provides health insurance to 68 million seniors and people with disabilities.  

Don’t let Rep. Allen fool you. He voted for cutting health insurance. He voted for permanent tax cuts for billionaires. 

Michele Springsteen

Statesboro