As hundreds of hospitals across the country face risk of closure because of the GOP’s Tax Scam, 28 of those at-risk hospitals are in California – and a quarter of them are located in or near the San Joaquin Valley.
Those impacts are likely to be felt hardest by hospitals serving David Valadao’s district which has the highest share of Medicaid enrollment in the country among House Republicans, yet he heartlessly voted for the bill anyways.
Here’s what hospital officials had to say:
KVPR: What the Big Beautiful Bill could mean for some hospitals in the San Joaquin Valley
- Hospital executives in the San Joaquin Valley are assessing how to take in looming Medicaid changes from the Big Beautiful Bill Act…Health advocates say the bill in several ways will limit health care access in addition to cutting social safety net resources for residents, like food assistance.
- Fewer people on Medicaid could impact hospitals, which are at risk of receiving fewer payments as a result, and it could combine with already difficult financial situations.
- “Those hospitals are anchors in those communities…if you don’t have a hospital in some of these rural communities and they’re literally designated in areas [as critical access], you’re driving 30 to 40 minutes away to see emergency care.”
- “But how do hospital systems continue to take care of those folks and pay for all those operations and services?”
- Hospital officials say they are also turning more directly to elected officials for answers and support…“We’re going to have to figure this out. We know that health care is critical.”
- The Valley hospitals included in the University of North Carolina study were located across five different congressional districts, including those representing parts of Fresno, Merced, and Kern counties.
- Republican Congressman David Valadao has especially faced criticism for his support of Trump’s spending bill.
- House District 22, which Valadao represents, has the highest enrollment of Medicaid in the country, according to a New York Times analysis. The Times found 68% of residents in Valadao’s district are enrolled in the healthcare program.
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