Edwards said ‘no interest’ in Medicare cut, votes to cut anyway
Rep. Chuck Edwards.
File photo
In Western North Carolina, where aging populations and rural poverty place extraordinary pressure on the social safety net, few programs matter more than Medicaid and Medicare. Congressman Chuck Edwards, who represents North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District, has repeatedly said he and fellow Republicans had “no interest” in cutting Medicare, but his voting record tells the real story.
On May 22, Edwards had the chance to stop President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” but instead joined 214 other Republicans in passing the bill by one vote.
The bill, which Trump signed July 3, delivers sweeping tax cuts favoring corporations and high earners, increasing the national debt by over $3 trillion, weakening environmental standards, cutting nutritional assistance to low-income families and threatening health care access for millions.
Medicaid and Medicare, created in 1965 as part of President Lyndon Johnson’s “War on Poverty,” are jointly funded state and federal programs that provide health care to low-income families, pregnant women, people with disabilities and a growing number of elderly Americans who rely on long-term care.
Medicare offers health care coverage for 68 million Americans over the age of 65. Undocumented immigrants are not eligible. In North Carolina, the program covers roughly 1.6 million people, 88% of them 65 or older.
A 2023 study by the University of Iowa’s Rural Policy Research Institute shows more than 100,000 people are eligible for Medicare in Buncombe and Henderson counties alone — the two largest counties in Edwards’ congressional district. Nearly 18,000 Haywood County residents are also eligible, along with 8,800 in Jackson County, 11,700 in Macon County and 3,700 in Swain County.
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Due to a legal mandate that forces broad, automatic spending cuts when new laws add to the federal deficit, Medicare is set to absorb an estimated $490 billion in reductions over the next decade, beginning with the upcoming federal fiscal year in October. While Republicans have postponed many of the bill’s other safety-net cuts until after the election cycle, the Medicare reductions will take effect immediately.
On Oct. 14, 2022, before he was elected to Congress, Edwards told The Smoky Mountain News, “I’ve talked many times with members of the Republican caucus in Washington and there is absolutely no interest from Republicans to cut Medicare or Social Security.”
A graphic in a recent Washington Post story shows 26% of Edwards’ district enrolled in Medicare, the fifth-highest total in Congress.
During a March 13 town hall in Asheville, Edwards responded to a constituent’s question about cuts to Medicare and Medicaid. Edwards dodged the Medicaid part of the question, but mentioned Medicare.
“There’s no intent from President Trump, nor from the current Congress, to do anything to disrupt payments for Medicare or Social Security,” he said.
In contrast to Medicare, Medicaid eligibility is based on income rather than age and provides health coverage for more than 72 million low-income Americans. Undocumented immigrants are not eligible, except for emergency services which must be provided by law and would otherwise burden hospitals with providing uncompensated care. Undocumented immigrants may be eligible in states that have chosen to provide services and pay for them using only state dollars.
In North Carolina, Medicaid covers roughly 2.9 million people, including nearly 300,000 people with disabilities and more than a million children.
The most recent data from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services shows more than 81,000 people across Buncombe and Henderson counties are covered by Medicaid. In Haywood County, more than 18,000 people receive Medicaid benefits, along with 10,900 in Jackson, 9,800 in Macon, and 6,400 in Swain County. Many of those covered are working adults earning low wages in service, tourism or agriculture — major sectors of the economy in Edwards’ rural district.
The bill Edwards voted for includes major structural changes to Medicaid, one of which cuts more than $900 billion from Medicaid over 10 years, drastically reducing eligibility and services. While most cuts are delayed until after the 2026 election cycle, the long-term effect could displace millions from coverage, particularly residents of rural and low-income areas like Edwards’ district, that benefitted from Medicaid expansion starting in 2023.
Currently, the federal government pays 90% of the cost for the expansion population, with hospitals covering the rest through a special tax. However, when the North Carolina General Assembly passed Medicaid expansion, it did so with a “trigger” that would end expansion if the federal government’s reimbursements ever dropped – which is exactly what’s happening.
In April 2023, Edwards ignored the “Back off our Benefits” bus tour, which rolled into Asheville asking him to protect Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and veterans’ benefits.
Edwards likewise ignored a July 3 interview request from The Smoky Mountain News to talk about his vote on the bill. Edwards has not spoken to SMN since a June 1, 2023, event in Canton, where he said he would only speak with media outlets that have given him favorable coverage.
