Overview

• The Senate began a rapid-fire vote-a-rama under budget reconciliation on June 30, aiming to clear amendments and secure final passage by simple majority
• The Congressional Budget Office projects more than $1 trillion in Medicaid cuts over the next decade and estimates up to 11.8 million Americans would lose coverage by 2034
• Senators debated dozens of amendments on work requirements that would force enrollees to verify 80 hours of work per month, new cost-sharing for SNAP and contested immigrant eligibility rules
• Moderate Republicans including Thom Tillis, Rand Paul, Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski have signaled they could block the bill over health-care cuts and altered provider tax provisions
• Critics from Bernie Sanders to public-health researchers warn that the proposed cuts could drive tens of thousands of excess deaths annually and strain state budgets, risking hospital closures