The Virginian Pilot: The cost of federal cuts could add up for Virginia, experts say

VIRGINIA – As Winsome Earle-Sears backs Donald Trump’s attacks on Virginia jobs and his healthcare cuts, experts say the federal cuts could add up for Virginians. Legislative fiscal analyst Kim McKay told state legislators: 
 
“Layoffs of civilian workers by the Department of Defense poses a significant threat to Virginia with an estimate of a thousand Virginia workers already impacted, and with another 5,700 workers likely to follow,” McKay said. “You have another 2,114 Virginians filing for unemployment insurance from the top 100 federal contractors in the state.”
 
On the Medicaid cuts, Legislative fiscal analyst David Reynolds told legislators that: 
 
“However, these changes will reduce hospital revenues, which will be especially challenging for facilities currently operating at a loss” and that “Many families will see their premiums rise, and it’s likely for some, premiums will be unaffordable.” 
 
The Virginian Pilot: The cost of federal cuts could add up for Virginia, experts say

• Virginia will soon need to pay at least an additional $90 million a year in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) costs.
• If it wants to establish state Affordable Care Act premium tax credits, it would need to spend $270 million a year. And complying with new Medicaid requirements will require additional investment to agencies like the Department of Medical Assistance Services.
• That’s according to presentations given Thursday to the Emergency Committee on the Impacts of Federal Workforce and Funding Reductions.
• Legislative fiscal analysts David Reynolds and Kim McKay told legislators that with the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, they had a better sense of what federal cuts would mean for Virginia, but there are still unknowns. For example, Virginia’s unemployment data does not yet take into account federal employees who took buyouts and are still getting paid. Those cases are expected to show up in the unemployment numbers come October.
• “Virginia’s unemployment rate is worsening, rising to 3.5% in June from 3% in January,” McKay said.
• “Layoffs of civilian workers by the Department of Defense poses a significant threat to Virginia with an estimate of a thousand Virginia workers already impacted, and with another 5,700 workers likely to follow,” McKay said. “You have another 2,114 Virginians filing for unemployment insurance from the top 100 federal contractors in the state.”
• Medicaid changes include eligibility redeterminations for the expansion population every six months instead of every year. That will mean more work for the Department of Medical Assistance Services and local departments of Social Services.
• Absent from the OBBBA legislation were the premium health tax credit and the enhanced premium health tax credits for Affordable Care Act plans, which are set to expire in December.
• “Many families will see their premiums rise, and it’s likely for some, premiums will be unaffordable,” Reynolds said.
• The committee also heard about changes to higher education, including reductions in Pell Grant eligibility, caps on student borrowing and the elimination of the Grad PLUS program, which allows graduate and professional students to borrow up to their full tuition costs. 

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