Young Kim, a three-term Republican representative from California’s 40th District, has joined 11 other GOP lawmakers in opposing proposed Medicaid budget cuts, warning that the reductions could jeopardize essential services for vulnerable residents.
On April 14, the lawmakers sent a letter to House leadership stating they “cannot support cuts that reduce coverage for vulnerable populations or threaten the operations of hospitals, nursing homes, and safety-net health providers.” The letter marked a clear challenge to the White House’s proposed budget, which includes reduced funding for Medicaid, known as Medi-Cal in California.
The move complicates budget negotiations for House Speaker Mike Johnson and former President Donald Trump, as the Republican leadership works to secure support from both hardline conservatives and moderates within the party.
Letter signed by 12 GOP members from swing districts
The letter was first reported by Punchbowl News and signed by 12 Republican representatives, including David Valadao of California, Don Bacon of Nebraska, Juan Ciscomani of Arizona, Andrew Garbarino of New York, and Jeff Hurd of Colorado. Many of these representatives won tight races in last year’s election and are considered key Democratic targets in the next cycle.
In a public statement, Kim said, “I cannot support a budget resolution that fails to protect essential Medicaid services for vulnerable residents in my district. I’ve made that position clear to both leadership and my constituents, and I will continue to do so.”
Constituent protests and policy priorities
Recently, several constituents staged a protest outside Kim’s district office, demanding that she defend Medicaid funding.
In the letter, the lawmakers stated they support limited reforms aimed at improving efficiency within the program but opposed balancing the federal budget “at the expense of the health and economic stability of vulnerable communities.” They added, “We have a responsibility to uphold our commitments to the communities that elected us as the majority party.”
Responding to the pushback, Speaker Johnson said in a statement that Republicans aim to “strengthen and sustain Medicaid through budget adjustments” and added that “commonsense reforms” would eliminate waste and fraud while increasing efficiency.
SALT deduction also a priority for Kim
Beyond Medicaid, Kim is also prioritizing the issue of raising the cap on state and local tax (SALT) deductions in the ongoing budget talks. In January, she directly urged former President Trump to publicly support revising the cap to better reflect the concerns of Republicans from high-tax states.
In last year’s election, Kim won re-election with 55.3% of the vote, defeating Democratic challenger Joe Kerr.
BY BRIAN CHOI [ichoi@koreadaily.com]
