Recent reporting indicates that the administration is planning to significantly cut or eliminate critical programs for older adults and people with disabilities in its proposed fiscal year 2026 budget request for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The administration has not yet submitted a budget proposal to Congress; the reporting refers to a draft proposal. The draft includes cuts to programs regarding substance abuse and services for low-income and older Americans. The draft budget, if passed, would eliminate a number of programs that protect older adults from fraud and abuse, including the Long Term Care Ombudsman Program, which works to safeguard the health, welfare and rights of nursing home residents; the State Health Insurance Assistance Program, which provides free, unbiased counseling and assistance to Medicare beneficiaries and their caregivers; and Adult Protective Services support, which helps protect older adults from abuse and exploitation.
Budget proposals are viewed as vision statements that reflect the administration’s priorities. The actual budget must be negotiated in Congress. The Center for Medicare Advocacy (CMA) anticipates these discussions to occur in Congress in the late spring and into summer. CMA will monitor this situation and continue to update advocates.
April 24, 2025 – K. Kertesz