As Republicans continue their health care shutdown, the 2026 Medicare Open Enrollment period begins, and nearly 70 million seniors will be signing up for their plans and benefits. Unfortunately, Trump and Republicans in Congress have guaranteed that millions of seniors on Medicare will pay more for premiums, out-of-pocket costs, and prescription drugs next year. Republicans told people that they’d lower costs, but they’ve actually made life cost more for everyday people. Because of the GOP tax bill passed this summer, seniors will pay more for prescription drugs, lose help paying Medicare premiums, and get kicked out of nursing homes. Read below to learn more about how the Trump-GOP tax scam will destroy seniors’ health care:
- The Trump-GOP Budget Guts Half A Trillion Dollars From Medicare. By skyrocketing the federal deficit by trillions in order to give tax breaks to the wealthiest Americans and corporations, Trump triggered hundreds of billions of dollars in “sequestration” cuts to Medicare despite repeatedly promising he would not touch Medicare. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office confirmed this will amount to $536 billion in cuts to Medicare over the next decade – meaning fewer services for seniors.
- The Trump-GOP Budget Hikes Medicare Premiums And Out-of-Pocket Costs By Thousands And Puts Coverage Out Of Reach For Low-Income Seniors. The Trump-GOP budget will make a program that helps seniors afford their Medicare premiums and out-of-pocket costs immensely harder for seniors to access, forcing 1.3 million seniors to pay higher premiums and out-of-pocket costs and 1 million seniors to be priced out of coverage altogether. Elderly couples making as little as $19,000 a year will pay $3,300 more in health care costs thanks to the Trump-GOP budget.
- The Trump-GOP Budget Forces Seniors To Pay More For Lifesaving Drugs. At a time when six in ten seniors report being concerned about their ability to afford prescription drugs, President Trump handed Big Pharma their biggest win in years, which will allow them to bypass Medicare drug price negotiations and raise prices on drugs that millions of vulnerable Americans rely on. Countless seniors fighting cancer and other diseases who rely on drugs such as Keytruda and Opdivo will be robbed of financial relief and will suffer the consequences, while corporations get more tax breaks, thanks to Trump.
- The Trump-GOP Budget Kicks Seniors Out Of Nursing Homes. The Trump-GOP budget jeopardizes long-term care for millions of seniors by gutting over $1 trillion from Medicaid, which nearly 3 million seniors on Medicare rely on to pay for their long-term care. Medicaid pays for 3 in 5 residents in nursing homes. Without this coverage, these crucial services will be out of reach to these seniors and their families since the median private nursing home room cost over $110,000 a year in 2024.