Axios: Republicans Flirt With Kicking Americans Off Health Care to Fund Iran War
axios — House Republicans are weighing deep cuts to health programs to offset a push for large new defense spending tied to the Iran war, creating a high-stakes budget fight in Congress. House Budget Chair Jodey Arrington (R-Texas) has floated adding additional defense spending to an upcoming reconciliation bill and offsetting the increase through cuts to state and social programs. The Pentagon is seeking $200 billion from Congress to pay for the ongoing American-Israel war against Iran.
What lawmakers are proposing
House leaders are examining reconciliation as the vehicle to add military funding while forcing offsets into other parts of the federal budget. Jodey Arrington’s proposal would raise defense spending and carve the offsets from state and social programs, a move that critics say would target Medicaid and Affordable Care Act financial assistance. The so-called Big Beautiful Bill passed last year cut over $1 trillion from Medicaid and health care spending and is already expected to cost millions their health insurance. The Congressional Budget Office’s assessment last year estimated that measures like targeting cost-sharing reductions would produce an additional 300, 000 Americans losing coverage and raise out-of-pocket costs for some ACA plan holders; that is in addition to the 14 million Americans projected to lose coverage by 2030 as a result of the earlier bill.
Immediate reactions
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La. ) framed the discussion around eliminating what he characterized as fraud, waste and abuse: “There’s other items we’re looking at right now, especially in the areas of fraud and waste and abuse that we’re working through with our members. ” Critics counter that most adults on Medicaid already work, that fraud is rare, and that much Medicaid fraud is committed by providers rather than individuals who lose coverage. Rep. Arrington’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Not all Republicans support new spending for the Iran conflict. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky. ) said he is not for the war and not for funding more of it. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo. ) has publicly stated she would vote no on any supplemental for the Iran war. Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) said he would need clear goals before authorizing a blank check, and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky. ) raised similar concerns about duration and objectives.
Political stakes and next moves
Republicans are also pursuing other reconciliation targets, including funding for immigration enforcement agencies; the Department of Homeland Security debate has already left ICE and much of CBP excluded from prior bipartisan restorations, and some GOP lawmakers seek to use reconciliation to secure additional funds for ICE and CBP while advancing more military aid. Because reconciliation requires that new expenditures be offset by equivalent cuts, legislative architects acknowledge the tradeoff: increased defense or enforcement spending will necessitate reductions somewhere else in the federal budget, and health programs are on the table.
Advocates and some lawmakers warn that pushing these offsets will deepen coverage losses and increase costs for people on ACA plans and Medicaid. The debate follows the longest partial government shutdown in history and arrives as midterm political pressures mount; proponents and opponents are gearing up for a fractious floor fight if reconciliation language is advanced. The keyword axios appears in this briefing as a reminder of the contested reporting footprint around the debate.
What happens next: lawmakers must resolve whether reconciliation will include the Pentagon’s request and where offsets will fall. Expect floor maneuvers and public statements from both proponents and opponents as committees draft and members declare positions; the path forward will hinge on internal GOP consensus and pressure from named institutions including the Pentagon and the Congressional Budget Office. The keyword axios reappears here as this story moves toward votes and new budget outlines.
