Arizona Sens. Mark Kelly, Ruben Gallego hold town hall over potential Medicaid cuts

By Marshall Baker
Navajo Times

PHOENIX

Democratic Arizona Sens. Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego hosted a town hall in Phoenix on March 17 to discuss the potential impacts of cuts to Medicaid led by congressional Republicans.

Kelly and Gallego came together at NOAH Cholla Health Center in Scottsdale dedicated to serving low-income communities.

Sitting on the stage with Gallego in front of a disgruntled crowd, Kelly laid out the potential Republican-led plans to slash Medicaid to cover tax cuts, similar to the tax cuts during Trump’s first term in 2017. In Arizona, there are roughly 750,000 currently on Medicaid.

“They want to cut about 880 billion dollars from Medicaid, Medicare, or both,” said Kelly. “This hasn’t happened yet, and it’s possible we could prevent it from happening.”

This discussion comes amid the wave of cuts to federal funding led by the Trump Administration to reduce government spending. Although no motion has been made, the groundwork for extending the 2017 tax cuts has already been set in place by congressional Republicans with the recent passing of a budget resolution. Much of the concern also lies with the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, which has already made efforts to reduce funding for crucial services for Native Americans like IHS and the BIA.

“Make no mistake, they’re coming after you. They’re coming after families, they’re coming after veterans,” said Kelly.

To read the full article, please see the April 3, 2025, edition of the Navajo Times.

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