About 725,000 healthcare jobs could be lost by 2026 as a result of the pending House GOP healthcare bill, according to analysts.
Researchers at George Washington University found in their recent investigation that, if made law, the American Health Care Act could cost the country a million jobs overall.
One big reason is that the Affordable Care Act allows states expansion of Medicaid with partial funding coming from the federal government, and that would end under the AHCA, speakers said at a Commonwealth Fund press event held Tuesday.
The loss of federal funding for Medicaid also was predicted to be harmful for safety-net hospitals who serve Medicaid and uninsured patients disproportionately.
The bill “will penalize those safety-net hospitals with the greatest commitment to Medicaid and uninsured patients, just exactly the opposite of what you would like to see,” said Allen Dobson, president of Dobson/Davanzo Consulting.
The Senate version of the bill was expected to emerge from secrecy Thursday morning.
