Medicaid, the state and federal program that provides health coverage for millions of low-income Americans, has taken center stage in Congress’s bid to pass President Donald Trump’s sweeping agenda.
In simplest terms, Republicans want to reduce the cost of the $816 billion program as part of a long-term plan to cut federal spending and implement Trump’s tax cuts and his border and energy measures.
Democrats adamantly oppose cuts to the program.
Though nearly one in four Americans is covered by Medicaid, many people seem to know little about the program or how it works.
Here are the basics of this complex system, which was created in 1965 and has been altered several times since….