Budget Battles Intensify: Medicaid, Minimum Wage, and Energy Subsidies on the Chopping Block

Money Explainers

21/6/2025

The Senate is making major changes to the House-passed budget, sparking new debates.
Rural hospitals face threats from proposed Medicaid cuts in the Senate budget bill. A bipartisan bill seeks to double the federal minimum wage, but will it pass?
#BudgetBillUpdate. #MedicaidOnTheLine. #MinimumWageFight.

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00:00The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, a multi-trillion dollar budget reconciliation package, is now

00:06in the Senate, where committees have stamped their mark with significant revisions, creating

00:11fresh battlegrounds.

00:13One of the most contentious areas involves Medicaid spending cuts.

00:18Senate Majority Leader John Thune is pushing hard to get the bill passed by President Trump's

00:23July 4 deadline, but he faces strong opposition from Republican senators concerned about the

00:29severe impact on rural hospitals.

00:32Senators like Susan Collins and Josh Hawley are fighting to protect these vital facilities,

00:38arguing that proposed restrictions on states' ability to collect federal Medicaid funding

00:42through provider taxes would be devastating.

00:46Negotiations are also underway concerning Medicaid's work requirements and the potential for shifting

00:52too much cost onto states and lower-income Americans.

00:56The Senate's version of the bill makes crucial changes to the House's original.

01:00It raises the debt ceiling by an additional trillion dollars to five trillion dollars and

01:05makes permanent several expiring provisions of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, including

01:12the boosted standard deduction and broad tax cuts.

01:15To offset the increased cost of these permanent tax breaks, Senate committees have sought even

01:21deeper savings from Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program SNAP, with new

01:28caps on provider taxes and increased administrative burdens for states.

01:33Beyond the budget, Senator Josh Hawley has introduced a bipartisan bill to double the federal minimum

01:39wage to $15 per hour by 2026, with future increases tied to inflation.

01:45This proposal aims to boost earnings for working Americans, but it has sparked debate over its

01:51potential impact on businesses and employment.

01:54President Trump himself expressed uncertainty about supporting a federal minimum wage hike.

02:00Acknowledging $7.25 is a very low number, but also citing concerns about businesses in high-wage

02:08areas like California.

02:10Finally, the bill's treatment of energy tax credits is a hot topic, while it favors nuclear,

02:17geothermal, and hydropower by extending their tax credits.

02:22It also includes language that could abruptly terminate tax credits for clean hydrogen facilities

02:28not under construction by year-end.

02:31Raising concerns about stranded investments, Senator Hawley also criticized the bill for

02:36effectively defunding rural hospitals to pay for phasing out renewable energy tax credits,

02:43arguing that pet projects should find their own funding.

02:46These internal Republican disagreements and the ongoing negotiations highlight the complexities

02:51of crafting a comprehensive budget bill with far-reaching implications across the economy

02:56and for various sectors.

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