A majority of Americans who voted for President Trump oppose cuts to Medicaid funding, according to a recent poll.
Two-thirds of surveyed swing voters oppose cutting Medicaid spending to pay for tax cuts, as do 51 percent of surveyed Trump voters, according to the poll conducted by the firm Fabrizio Ward.
The poll is significant because of a debate over cutting Medicaid to help pay for Trump’s legislative agenda, which includes an extension of his 2017 tax cuts. The House panel overseeing Medicaid has been asked to find $880 billion in cuts, which would be difficult to achieve without going after Medicaid.
The issue divides the GOP, as a number of Republicans fear deep cuts to Medicaid could boomerang on their own constituents.
Fabrizio Ward is a firm run by Tony Fabrizio, who was the pollster for Trump’s 2024 campaign. Trump has said he opposes cuts to Medicaid except to root out fraud and waste.
“There is no appetite across the political spectrum for cutting Medicaid to pay for tax cuts,” the survey reads. “Medicaid is well-liked by most voters, in large part due to the broad impact it has across the electorate and the high level of importance voters place on as many Americans as possible having health insurance.”
About 1 in 5 Trump voters has or has had Medicaid, the poll notes, while another 1 in 5 have family on Medicaid. The majority of surveyed Trump voters — 87 percent — believe it is important for as many Americans as possible to be covered by health insurance.
Fabrizio Ward surveyed 1,000 registered voters across the country March 20-24 for the poll both online and through live phone calls.
It was conducted on behalf of the Modern Medicaid Alliance, a coalition of organizations that represent patients, doctors, hospitals and caregivers, according to Politico, who first reported the poll findings.