Cornyn Remarks on Biden Reversal of Texas’s Medicaid Waiver

I recently shared my frustration that the Biden Administration has rescinded Texas’s 1115 Medicaid  Waiver Extension in the Senate Finance Committee. I currently have a hold on the nomination of Chiquita Brooks-LaSure to be administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services until I can get more clarity from the Biden Administration on how to rectify this waiver issue. Excerpts of my remarks are below, and video can be found here.

This is a sucker punch by the Administration against the most vulnerable population in Texas that are covered by Medicaid.

More than 4 million of my constituents, including half of all children in the state, depend on the stability of the state's Medicaid program to provide health care for themselves and their families. Unfortunately, as I said, this recent unannounced and surprise move by the Biden Administration has put our entire health care system in jeopardy.

Hospitals and providers in the state have been pushed to the brink by COVID-19 and this action robs hospitals of the ability to plan ahead for their financial stability, and uncompensated care costs, and it directly threatens care for uninsured patients.

I urge my colleagues to join me in standing up for the health care of all of our constituents, in particularly, the most vulnerable in our states, and Mr. Chairman, I would just reiterate my request to postpone the vote on Ms. Brooks-LaSure just to give me time to take the Administration up on their offer for me to talk to the White House Chief of Staff about this. We weren't warned ahead of time and so we're trying to play catch up and reaching out in any way we can to understand why this action was taken and what we might be able to do to make it right.