As Medicaid cuts look increasingly likely per Congress’ recently-passed budget plan, this week’s graphic uses survey data from KFF to take stock of the public’s view of the program. The data show that most Americans want Medicaid funding to increase or stay the same. While Democrats support the program’s funding more strongly, only about one-third of Republicans want the program’s funding to decrease. Rural residents, who tend to rely on Medicaid more than urban residents, also strongly favor maintaining or increasing Medicaid funding. Survey respondents overwhelmingly expressed that Medicaid is important to their local communities, with more than 9 in 10 respondents across political party identification agreeing the program was very or somewhat important to their community. Rural residents expressed overwhelmingly strong support, with 98% calling the program very or somewhat important. Medicaid enjoys a popular reputation and has transformed care access in communities nationwide, making public pushback about potential cuts likely.
