ST. PAUL, Minn. – State officials are on pins and needles about drastic cuts that President Trump is pushing. The state budget director, Ahna Minge, told legislators that one-third of the Minnesota state budget relies on federal funds. At greatest risk, Minge said, is Medicaid healthcare insurance for low-income people. Federal Medicaid support to Minnesota is $12 billion, Minge said at a Senate Finance Committee hearing. In all, she said, federal dollars account for more than one-third of the state’s spending — roughly $23 billion. Besides Medicaid, federal dollars go to roads, food assistance for the needy, public healthcare, and childcare. The Trump budget, which received initial U.S. House approval this week, decimates Medicaid funds to states by $880 billion. Medicaid is only one of the many Trump-proposed cuts to offset revenue losses that would result from huge tax cuts he wants for the benefit of rich people and corporations. It’s possible that not all Trump reductions will make it through the whole Congressional budgeting process. Even so, said Minge: “Uncertainty about the federal budget creates a lot of challenges and uncertainty for state agencies and policymakers.”
Earlier: How they voted: On Medicaid cuts / 1
Minge. Appointed 2021. Earlier chief financial officer at state Human Services Department.