Why Medicaid Is the Center of Debate Over Trump’s Spending Plan

Medicaid, the medical coverage program for low-income Americans, finds itself at the center of a scrum between Republicans and Democrats, haggling over funding President Donald Trump’s second-term agenda. Republicans, aiming to improve government efficiency, are pushing to rid Medicaid of the fraud and waste they say rob the program and the 72 million Americans who depend on it for medical care. Democrats, accusing Republicans of trying to slash Medicaid funding to counterbalance tax cuts, are pushing to avoid any changes to the program. Here’s how Medicaid, with its $616 billion in federal spending, became the political football in Congress’s budget reconciliation debate....