In a letter sent to bipartisan leaders in the House and Senate, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Catholic Health Association, and Catholic Charities urged lawmakers to protect and strengthen Medicaid as a matter of faith.
"The Catholic Church teaches that human life is sacred, and all people have inherent dignity and worth. As Catholic bishops and organizations that provide health care and social services on behalf of the Church, we firmly believe that all people have the right to those necessities needed to live, found a family and flourish," the organizations wrote. "As you address reconciliation priorities, we urge you to prioritize those most in need and working families and protect the Medicaid program."
House Republicans are debating how deep they need to cut to pay for an extension of President Trump's tax cuts and border enforcement funding, and how much political backlash they can endure.
One of the prime targets is Medicaid, the joint federal and state-funded program that provides health coverage to more than 72 million low-income Americans. Republicans see Medicaid as a program rife with fraud and abuse, and have long sought to rein in its spending.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee, which has jurisdiction over Medicaid, has been tasked with slashing $880 billion.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said this week in a CNN interview that some of the steepest potential cuts, like a change that would cap federal payments based on population rather than the current open-ended entitlement, are off the table. He left the door open to reducing the enhanced federal match for Medicaid expansion states and enthusiastically endorsed work requirements.
Work requirements may be the most politically palatable changes Republicans have discussed, but the Catholics pushed back on those as well.
"Weakening Medicaid through structural changes, such as per capita caps or block grants, would undermine these values and risk leaving millions without access to essential health services," the organizations wrote. "Furthermore, policies like work reporting requirements have shown clear evidence of creating artificial barriers to care ... while doing little to support people looking for work."
Any changes to Medicaid will likely face pushback from vulnerable Republicans in swing or blue districts. Roughly half (eight of the top 17) of the most vulnerable GOP House members in 2026 are Catholic, according to a Pew Research Center report on the religious composition of the 119th Congress.
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