You are about to get screwed

Cutting Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid is much worse than you realize

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Oh it’s bad

One thing I notice about the arguments around the budget and the potential cuts to programs is that it’s all very theoretical most of the time. I mean we are talking about HUGE numbers and concepts. Trillions of dollars are all very nebulous when you discuss it so it’s hard to wrap your head around.

So, let’s talk about it in a way that makes it real to you and me. What are they planning, what’s the big picture in the U.S., and how might this impact you? If you’re not familiar with the term ‘filial responsibility’ you’re in for a ride.

I bring this up because of the continued discussions of cutting Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid as Musk and the Republicans continue signaling their intent and millions of Americans remain in denial.

Here is Musk speaking with Fox Business oral satisfaction aficionado Larry Kudlow yesterday in the most awkward interview you can painfully watch.

I don’t know how much clearer you can make it. He is stating unequivocally that he intends to go after “entitlements” in his quest to cut our government. What is disgusting is that his implication that those programs are purely a means to attract illegal immigrants and make them Democratic voters. The level of jackassery it takes to state that is astounding. We will break that out below.

Also, look at your pay stub and you’ll be shocked to find out you’ve been paying for these “entitlements” your entire life.

Good news for Elon though is that Republicans are quick to dive in front of the bullet for him.

This morning, Missouri Congressman Mark Alford, recently famous for saying laid off Federal workers need to relax because God has a plan for them, appeared on CNN to take the bullet.

Poor Elon. World’s richest man and super genius can’t speak well. What a burden for him to bear. Luckily we have an entire party dying to save him from his words as he nukes our government unchecked by law or the other branches of government.

They wrote a whole ass plan

We’ve talked about Project 2025 for over a year and a half. That discusses raising the retirement age to qualify for social security benefits to 69. We have numerous budget plans that have talked about Medicare and Medicaid.

The Republicans own budget blueprint they just passed in the House is only hard to understand if you are willfully being ignorant to how the process works. NBC News broke it out clearly last week,

“House Republicans can’t meet their own budget target that is necessary to pass President Donald Trump’s legislative agenda without making significant cuts to Medicare or Medicaid, the official budget scorekeeper confirmed Wednesday.

House Republicans adopted a budget blueprint last week that opens the door to pass Trump’s policy priorities on immigration, energy and taxes. It instructs the House Energy and Commerce Committee to cut spending under its jurisdiction by $880 billion.

The Congressional Budget Office, a nonpartisan in-house think tank that referees the process, said that when Medicare is set aside, the total funding under the committee’s jurisdiction is $8.8 trillion over 10 years. Medicaid accounts for $8.2 trillion of that, or 93%.

When Medicare and Medicaid are excluded, the committee oversees a total of $581 billion in spending — much less than the $880 billion target — the CBO said.”

So, the only way to meet their budget plan that calls for one committee their spend by an astounding $880 billion is to massively cut Medicare and Medicaid. There is no wiggle room here no matter how much they want to lie to you about it.

What’s the big picture?

Social Security: As of 2024 over 71.6 million Americans are receiving Social Security benefits which includes people who receive retirement benefits, disability benefits, and survivor benefit. That’s around 21% of all living Americans.

Medicare: More than 66 million people in the United States receive Medicare benefits. The federal health insurance program covers a wide range of services, including hospitalizations, prescription drugs, and physician visits. Generally it’s used for Americans 65 or older, people with disabilities, people with End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD), and ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease) among other qualifying illnesses. That’s about 19% of all Americans.

Medicaid: Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) provide health and long-term care coverage to almost 82 million low-income children, pregnant women, adults, seniors, and people with disabilities in the United States according to tracking organization KFF. As of October, 2024 72,058,701 people were enrolled in Medicaid. and 7,249,301 people were enrolled in CHIP. While Medicaid covers 1 in 5 people living in the United States, Medicaid is a key source of coverage for certain populations. In 2023, Medicaid covered nearly 4 in 10 children, over 8 in 10 children in poverty, 1 in 6 adults, and almost half of adults in poverty.

So, these “entitlements” are not for illegal immigrants. They are for average Americans and touch a majority of them in some way. Just to be clear since it’s so stupid to not ignore…no…illegal immigrants are not eligible for any of these programs. As a matter of fact LEGAL immigrants aren’t either as reliance on government support is disqualifying for a green card.

One thing you can count on Republicans for is to not let facts get in the way of a good story.

How does this touch you?

Many Americans simply don’t have a connection to any of these programs. I get it. I am a retired Army officer. I get my military retirement and a disability payment from the Department of Veterans Affairs. In the next decade I will be eligible to begin taking my Social Security as well. I have not used Medicare or Medicaid.

Well, none of that means you and I won’t be touched by these cuts.

Let’s start with what happens to elderly Americans when they lose their social security checks. Will they have to go to work again? Are they even physically able to do so? How many will fall into homelessness or worse? You don’t think that won’t touch all of us?

That’s not the really scary part.

Medicaid covers over 60% of elderly Americans in nursing homes and memory care facilities across the country. Medicaid covers 100% of the costs for those facilities for those that qualify. Recent analysis shows that in the US, the average monthly cost for memory care is around $6,200, while the national median cost for a nursing home is $8,669 for a semi-private room and $9,733 for a private room.

Here is the part that is going to make your hair stand up. As of today 29 states have what are known as ‘filial responsibility laws.' Filial responsibility is a legal concept in which an adult child is financially responsible for their parents’ unpaid healthcare costs. Some states extend this responsibility to close relatives too.

In short, an individual could have filial responsibility if they have the means to pay for their parents’ unpaid long-term case bills, when their parents are not covered by Medicaid but do not have the financial means to pay for them. Even if you are estranged from your parents or loved ones…you can bear the burden. They will literally garnish your wages for non-compliance in many states.

This lawyer’s site has a handy list of the states and their laws but it includes California. Virginia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and more.

Yes, when Elon and the Republicans cut Medicaid you will be responsible for your parents care by law. Neat trick, huh? Do you have $10,000 a month per parent laying around in your family budget for that right now?

(Kudos to Angela Muirhead for the tip in her Instagram Reel)

Does this sound like a scheme to stop illegal immigration or a mission to dismantle our entire social safety net and create willing poor workers for the corporations?

I’m not a genius like Elon but I did go to West Point and Harvard and I somehow soaked up enough knowledge to know this is bullshit.

Start calling those members of Congress and hitting the streets. This isn’t about saving America or efficiency. It’s about putting you to work for their factories that will no longer have OSHA inspectors, unions, or benefits.

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