Dr. Mehmet Oz, President Donald Trump’s Administrator for Medicare and Medicaid Services, is facing sharp criticism after suggesting that the more than ten million people projected to lose their healthcare under the current Republican budget bill do not matter.
The legislation as written requires that many Medicaid users work and provide documentation that they have worked at least 80 hours each month, or be kicked off the critical safety net. Many Republicans have been suggesting Medicaid users are intentionally not working so they can collect federal government benefits like Medicaid. But many Medicaid users do work, and many cannot find jobs.
“Go out there, do the entry-level jobs, get into the workforce. Prove that you matter, get agency into your own life,” Dr. Oz, the former television talk show host and promoter of allegedly questionable health supplements and other products, told Fox Business.
“It’s a much more enjoyable experience if you’re going through a life thinking that you control your destiny, and you’ll get better insurance at the same time,” he claimed.
Nearly half of employers—about 46%—do not offer health insurance at all. Most exclude part-time workers from coverage. Gig workers typically receive no health benefits through their jobs. And many seasonal workers struggle to meet the monthly hour thresholds needed to remain eligible for Medicaid.
The Hill also reported that Dr. Oz said to people not willing to go back to work, volunteer, or take care of a loved one, “we are going to ask you to do something else. Go on the exchange, or get a job and get onto regular commercial insurance. But we are not going to continue to pay for Medicaid for those audiences.”
Critics blasted Oz.
“When asked about Medicaid cuts, the literal head of the federal agency overseeing Medicaid had this to say: ‘Prove that you matter.’ Absolutely incredible,” remarked Andrea Ducas, Vice President of health policy at the Center for American Progress.
“Health care isn’t a prize for being productive. It’s a right. And 16 million people could lose it if this bill passes,” warned the nonprofit Protect Our Care.
“Dr. Oz, who spent his career hawking colloidal silver as a cure-all, tells Medicaid recipients to ‘prove that you matter’ if they want health care,” charged Alexandra De Luca, vice president of communications at the liberal super PAC American Bridge.
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