(Src: Black Information Network)
About 1.6 million Americans have been removed from Medicaid during the first six months of President Donald Trump’s second term, according to new numbers from the health research group KFF, per Newsweek.
The drop reflects continued rollbacks of pandemic-era protections that expanded access to the program. During the COVID-19 public health emergency, states were barred from removing people from Medicaid even if their income changed.
That policy, enacted under former President Joe Biden, pushed enrollment to more than 87 million people by March 2023, up from 64.5 million in early 2020. States restarted removals in March 2023, and coverage has steadily declined. As of July 2025, enrollment had fallen to about 70.3 million. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) said it aims to balance eligibility enforcement with protecting access, telling Newsweek it is “committed to protecting the most vulnerable Americans” while ensuring states provide coverage “only to those who are eligible.”
The decrease comes ahead of bigger policy shifts. Trump’s proposed “One Big Beautiful Bill” includes about $1 trillion in Medicaid cuts, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Health policy experts warn that new work reporting rules and added paperwork could push many more people out of the program.
At the same time, the administration has not renewed enhanced Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits that helped low-income Americans afford marketplace plans during the pandemic. Without them, premiums are expected to rise by roughly 20%, affecting small business workers, students, retirees, and others who rely on ACA coverage instead of employer insurance.
Researchers caution that many families losing coverage will struggle to maintain consistent care. Boston University policy scholar Paul Shafer told Newsweek that millions more could lose insurance and warned that without affordable coverage, people will delay treatment and medication, leading to “a cycle where those already struggling most end up going without care until they are sicker and more expensive to help.”
