Medicaid and the Budget Control Act: What Options Will Be Considered?

On August 2, 2011, President Obama signed the Budget Control Act of 2011 into law. The Act was designed to reduce federal spending and raise the debt ceiling. It established the Joint Select Committee, also known as the “Super Committee,” tasked with decreasing projected deficits by $1.5 trillion between FY2012 and FY2021. The Committee has broad authority to propose changes to meet its target, including changes to Medicare, Social Security, Medicaid, defense, taxes, and any other element of the budget.

On September 19, 2011, the Obama Administration released the President’s Plan for Economic Growth and Deficit Reduction, which assumes $3 trillion in deficit reduction proposals over the next decade. The plan included revenue increases and spending reductions, including cuts to Medicaid. The Super Committee may consider this plan, as well as plans from other deficit reduction commissions. This brief provides a summary of some of the Medicaid proposals, including those proposed by the Obama administration, that could be debated by the congressional Super Committee in an effort to achieve federal deficit reduction targets.

Policy Brief (.pdf)