Prairie State Wire

Jeanne Ives, a former legislator and founder of Breakthrough Ideas, has criticized Governor J.B. Pritzker and U.S. Representatives Sean Casten and Delia Ramirez for their statements regarding Medicaid cuts. "They need to stop lying about cuts to Medicaid," she said in a post on the social media platform X on March 14.

"JB Pritzker and his sycophants like Sean Castenand Delia Ramirez need to stop lying about cuts to Medicaid," said Ives. "The Republican budget only slows the increase when actually they should cut the fraud and payments for illegals."

According to a report from Unleash Prosperity, Medicaid spending is increasing annually, which contradicts claims by Congressional Democrats that the Republican budget includes "deep cuts" to the program. The report features a graphic shared by Ives in her X post, indicating that federal Medicaid spending under the House Budget Resolution is projected to save $810 billion over the next decade. The graphic illustrates Medicaid spending of $695 billion in 2026, with annual increases ranging from $11 billion to $25 billion. While these increases are slower than what Democrats desire, they still signify an overall rise in spending rather than a reduction.

Screenshot of Jeanne Ives' March14 post on X | X

An ABC7 news report disclosed that Illinois allocated $36.9 billion for Medicaid in the 2023-2024 fiscal year, with approximately 62% of this funding sourced from the federal government. This information was provided by Lizzie Whitehorn, director of the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services.

In a news release dated February 28, Governor Pritzker detailed the potential impact of proposed federal cuts to Medicaid. He noted that around 3.4 million Illinois residents depend on the program, including 1.4 million children. The release also emphasized that half of those living with HIV in Illinois are covered by Medicaid, along with 44% of births in the state, 80% of community mental health center patients, and 45% of employees in Illinois hospitals and health systems. Representative Casten added that more than 80,000 constituents in his 6th Congressional District would be affected by these proposed cuts.

Jeanne Ives served as an Illinois state representative for six years representing House District 42. She ran for governor in 2018 and sought election to represent Illinois’ 6th Congressional District in 2020. Ives resides in Wheaton, Illinois.