This is not a drill. They’re coming for Medicaid.

Even GOP U.S. Senator Josh Hawley is sounding the alarm.

It’s happening in real time.

While most of the country is just trying to get by, House Republicans are racing to jam through a massive budget bill that would gut Medicaid and leave millions without healthcare. Over 14 million Americans are at risk. That’s not hyperbole.

This isn’t just a line item in a spreadsheet. This is a coordinated, calculated move to strip basic protections from the people who need them most. Seniors. Children. People with disabilities. Low-income families in red states and blue states alike.

What’s driving this? Trump’s second-term mega-bill, wrapped in “economic revival” language, extends his original tax cuts while slashing spending to pay for them. And where are they looking first? Healthcare. Medicaid is first on the chopping block.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates these Medicaid provisions could force at least 7.6 million people off their health insurance by 2034. That may sound far off, but the damage will begin much sooner.

This bill imposes harsh work requirements, stricter eligibility checks, and increased out-of-pocket costs. And it doesn’t stop there. It chips away at coverage for long-term care, hurting seniors, people with disabilities, and families already stretched thin. As someone who cares for my elderly mom, and knows many families doing the same, I can tell you: it’s already hard. Financially, emotionally.

Now they’re about to make it even harder.

Even Senator Josh Hawley, not exactly a moderate, has had enough. In a New York Times op-ed (gifting the article because everyone should read it), he blasted the so-called “Wall Street wing” of the GOP for prioritizing corporate tax cuts over working-class healthcare. He called it both “morally wrong and politically suicidal.”

He then went on CNN, and doubled down, saying flat out that the House’s proposals are “real Medicaid cuts.” If Josh Hawley is saying that, we all need to pay attention.

Meanwhile, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is now championing these cuts as head of the Department of Health and Human Services. In a chilling New York Times op-ed, he and other Trump officials pushed for harsh work requirements on Medicaid and other safety-net programs, claiming it would reduce dependency. But we know what this really is: bureaucracy as a weapon. When Arkansas tried similar policies, thousands of eligible people lost coverage due to administrative red tape.

This is more than policy, it’s cruelty dressed up in fiscal jargon.

We’re already seeing the backlash. As the House Energy and Commerce Committee marked up the bill, Capitol Police arrested 25 protesters, Americans who just want to protect Medicaid and the lives it sustains. But it will take more of us to raise hell on this one.

Even the American Hospital Association is warning that these cuts will devastate care, especially in rural areas that rely on Medicaid to keep hospitals running.

And let’s not kid ourselves, this is not just a Congressional budget battle. It’s part of a much bigger plan. I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again: this is all by design.

The same exact policies being pushed through the House right now were laid out in plain language in the “Mandate for Leadership” *echem*...Project 2025, the extreme-right blueprint for Trump's second term. Don’t worry. I spent a lot of time working through the entire 900-page monstrosity to flag these things for you so that you don’t have to suffer through that thing. (If you need it, start at page 315, then page 482 and keep reading.)

Here’s a snapshot of what it calls for:

• Work Requirements: Forcing low-income Americans to meet arbitrary work benchmarks to access care, even though many already work or can’t due to illness or caretaking responsibilities.

• Lifetime Coverage Limits: Ending Medicaid benefits for people who’ve “used up” a predetermined amount of time.

• Privatization & Block Grants: Turning over public health dollars to private insurers and states, weakening federal protections and accountability.

• Cutting ‘Non-Essential’ Services: Rolling back coverage for mental health care, substance abuse treatment, and other services people rely on to survive.

In my earlier piece, The Slow Kill, I warned that these attacks on social security and Medicaid were coming with a thousand quiet cuts–one institution, one safeguard, one social contract at a time. Now we’re here with a significant legislative moment on Capitol Hill. The Trump administration is not just dismantling healthcare; it’s dismantling the very idea of government responsibility, and the majority of House Republicans appear to be paving the way, this time without Trump having to own it or take responsibility for it. It’s a ruse that’s been baked behind the scenes. Savvy politics on his behalf, but really dumb politics on their behalf. Dumb enough that Senator Josh Hawley is calling them out.

The House is trying to pass this bill by Memorial Day. If they succeed, the Senate is next. The margin is razor-thin. And the time to act is right now.

Here’s what you can do:

• Call your representatives. Especially if you’re in a swing district or your member is on the fence. It’s being called a civil war within the Republican Party when it comes to this issue. The truth is they all know better, but the extremists are holding them hostage.

• And in preparation, since the House GOP seems set on pushing this through, start reaching out to your U.S. Senators. Better yet. Call Senator Josh Hawley's office and say thank you. What else can I do, and who else do I need to call? See what I did there? No one knows better than one of the members of their team…

• Show up. Go to town halls, support protests, speak out online and in person.

• Support advocacy groups fighting for Medicaid and those most vulnerable.

• Stay informed, and help others get informed too.

This isn't a policy debate, it's a moral emergency. Speak up. You have my word that I'm doing everything I can.

More, very soon…

Olivia