This week, a nonpartisan report found Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill would add $2.4 trillion to national debt over next decade.
WASHINGTON, D.C., USA — U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis, a Republican representing North Carolina, is proposing Medicare cuts as part of President Donald Trump’s legislative package, which already includes nearly $900 billion in Medicaid reductions.
Tillis told a HuffPost reporter that Medicare could face similar efficiency measures as those proposed for Medicaid.
“I think the same logic that you use to find to implement efficiencies in Medicaid … you can use at Medicare,” Tillis said. “These are billions and billions and billions of dollars spent every year. If we get 10, 15% efficiency out of that, that’s a big number.”
The bill, which passed the House last month, has drawn criticism from Democrats, who say the proposed cuts would harm health care access.
“Certainly waste, fraud and abuse, that’s part of any government program, but it’s a small amount,” Wiley Nickel, a Democrat who plans to challenge Tillis for his seat, said. “Ten to 15%, you’re just taking away health care.”
Nickel, who formerly represented North Carolina in Congress but didn’t run for reelection due to redistricting, said the health care discussion could be a key issue in the 2026 Senate race.
“The whole design of what they’re doing in Congress right now is really horrible,” Nickel said. “It’s about putting up barrier after barrier for families and seniors. You know, for these programs, they want to make it so hard that people just won’t be able to get coverage.”
The Congressional Budget Office released a report this week stating the bill would add $2.4 trillion to the national debt over the next decade. As a member of the Finance Committee, Tillis has said Republicans are working to reduce that figure without cutting benefits.
“It’s totally impossible,” Nickel said of the proposal to cut costs without affecting benefits.
Currently, 2.2 million North Carolinians use Medicare. A 15% cut could potentially affect more than 330,000 beneficiaries.
As of Friday afternoon, Tillis’ office did not respond to requests for clarification on the proposed cut amounts or how they would avoid impacting benefits.
Senate Republicans are working to finalize these changes, hoping to get the legislation to Trump’s desk by July 4.
The 2026 Senate race is already attracting attention from both parties. Former Gov. Roy Cooper has also expressed interest in the Democratic nomination to challenge Tillis, but has not formally announced he’d run.
On the Republican side, Tillis faces two declared primary challengers: Don Brown, a former congressional candidate, and Andy Nilsson, a political newcomer.
Contact Julie Kay at juliekay@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
