New state-by-state analysis shows how the Republican Study Committee budget would also worsen wait times for seniors who call for assistance with Medicare and Social Security

During his State of the Union Address, President Biden made clear that he will always stand up for America’s seniors and stand in the way of any Congressional Republicans who try to cut Social Security and Medicare. He laid out his vision for a future where we make the wealthy and big corporations pay their fair share while protecting and strengthening these bedrock programs that hardworking Americans pay into their entire working lives.

Less than two weeks later, the Republican Study Committee—which speaks for 80% of House Republicans and 100% of their leadership—released an extreme budget that takes direct aim at Medicare and Social Security. Their plan:

  • Calls for over $1.5 trillion in cuts to Social Security, including an increase in the retirement age to 69 and cutting disability benefits.
  • Raises Medicare costs for seniors by taking away Medicare’s authority to negotiate prescription drug costs, letting drug companies raise prices without consequence, and repealing $35 insulin and the $2,000 out-of-pocket cap in the Inflation Reduction Act.
  • Transitions Medicare to a system that would raise premiums for many seniors.

Congressional Republicans are demanding these reckless cuts in order to make room for another $5.5 trillion in tax cuts skewed to the wealthy and big corporations—including by providing massive tax cuts for billionaire investors, repealing President Biden’s minimum tax on billion-dollar corporations, and weakening the IRS’s ability to make wealthy tax cheats pay the taxes they owe.

At the same time, the Republican Study Committee budget would also require a roughly 31% cut to non-defense discretionary spending, which would force devastating cuts to countless programs that hardworking Americans count on. What would these cuts mean for seniors and people with disabilities who call for assistance with their Social Security and Medicare?

  • Social Security: People applying for disability benefits would have to wait at least two months longer for a decision. With fewer staff available, seniors would also be forced to endure longer wait times when they call for assistance with Social Security, and many Social Security field offices would be forced to close or shorten the hours they are open to the public.
  • Medicare: Seniors and people with disabilities in states across the country would be forced to endure longer wait times when they call the Medicare call center, potentially increasing average wait times from five to more than twelve minutes.

Below is a state-by-state breakdown showing how many Americans would face longer wait times when calling for assistance with Medicare and Social Security under the Republican Study Committee budget:

Impact of Republican-Proposed Reduction to Social Security and Medicare Administrative Funding
Number of beneficiaries impacted by RSC budget proposal
State or TerritoryMedicare EnrolleesSocial Security and/or Supplemental Security Income Beneficiaries
Alabama             1,095,969                     1,271,110
Alaska                114,560                        121,947
Arizona             1,450,888                     1,572,937
Arkansas                666,139                        783,091
California             6,740,207                     7,028,718
Colorado             1,004,624                     1,003,278
Connecticut                730,973                        766,671
Delaware                235,718                        252,898
District of Columbia                   95,598                        100,438
Florida             5,000,231                     5,429,229
Georgia             1,886,764                     2,147,409
Hawaii                299,283                        309,201
Idaho                379,816                        414,029
Illinois             2,362,004                     2,484,919
Indiana             1,340,157                     1,505,777
Iowa                668,579                        720,042
Kansas                574,432                        618,746
Kentucky                969,832                     1,126,358
Louisiana                924,261                     1,047,919
Maine                369,141                        389,655
Maryland             1,114,980                     1,150,875
Massachusetts             1,421,815                     1,439,660
Michigan             2,196,981                     2,470,760
Minnesota             1,115,271                     1,186,800
Mississippi                631,140                        758,911
Missouri             1,300,245                     1,442,657
Montana                255,037                        268,394
Nebraska                373,424                        388,983
Nevada                 583,337                        629,242
New Hampshire              332,890                        344,762
New Jersey             1,716,970                     1,809,342
New Mexico                453,190                        502,257
New York             3,822,366                     4,141,114
North Carolina             2,160,891                     2,417,289
North Dakota                143,541                        151,537
Ohio             2,475,491                     2,667,022
Oklahoma                785,494                        900,692
Oregon                925,614                        982,160
Pennsylvania             2,885,014                     3,164,221
Rhode Island                236,676                        256,810
South Carolina             1,187,364                     1,335,123
South Dakota                193,214                        206,006
Tennessee             1,445,200                     1,644,532
Texas              4,605,871                     5,059,972
Utah                448,571                        479,038
Vermont                161,347                        170,059
Virginia             1,636,771                     1,747,890
Washington             1,482,637                     1,547,916
West Virginia                446,668                       519,308
Wisconsin             1,277,405                     1,404,426
Wyoming               123,476                        130,282
Puerto Rico                 775,298                      827,567
Total 65,623,365 71,239,979

This analysis assumes an across-the-board reduction of roughly 31% compared to the currently enacted FY 2024 levels for non-defense discretionary (NDD) accounts. This aligns with the Republican Study Committee Budget, which would cut NDD base funding to $534 billion in FY 2025, a roughly 31% reduction from the funding provided in the enacted FY 2024 bills.



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