Donald Trump‘s administration passed the “Big Beautiful Bill”. Lawmakers and senators, during their townhalls, exclaimed- well, everyone dies when people raised objections. Yet, Vice President JD Vance somehow found a loophole somewhere to blame it all on Joe Biden.
Just how they did to the Barack Obama administration during Trump’s first term, the current trump administration is now blaming Biden’s government for closure of several rural hospitals. And in the process, they completely forgot their own role in advancing cuts to Medicaid and rural health programs.
JD Vance was speaking in Peachtree City, Georgia, on Thursday when he told supporters how the Trump administration is working towards healthcare. He claimed that the Trump administration had invested heavily in keeping rural hospitals open. He also pointed towards the allocation of $50 billion for rural healthcare over the next five years.
“What we did is put in a lot of resources… to make it possible for our rural hospitals to stay open despite what the Biden administration did to them for four years,” Vance said.
However, critics were not taking whatever Mr. Vice President was serving. Many, including New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, were quick to push back. Ms. Hochul had a few choice words, and she took them to X.
Lying through his teeth.
Donald Trump’s Big Ugly Bill puts 29 rural hospitals in New York on the chopping block.
We will hold you — and your boss — accountable. https://t.co/MiMKUWfJuT
— Kathy Hochul (@KathyHochul) August 21, 2025
She accused Vance of “lying through his teeth” by blaming Biden for closures and tried to remind Vance that these stemmed from Trump’s own July domestic policy bill.
Many social media users echoed the criticism. People noted that the damage to rural healthcare is widely documented, and every bit of it was tied to the administration’s massive cuts.
In July with Vance’s deciding vote, the policy package was passed. With it came cuts that took nearly $1 trillion from Medicaid. These cuts also included changes to the Affordable Care Act.
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) had already warned that these cuts and random policy changes could result in almost 4 million Americans losing health insurance by 2026.
Just when Republicans thought they were going to get away with cuts to Medicaid, the CBO comes out tonight with the cuts that will happen to the ACA and Medicare.
Republicans are going for the trifecta on cutting Health Insurance. Rep. Boyle gets an update. #DemsUnited… pic.twitter.com/obaQO0bcRx— Rod (Izzy) Ⓜ️Ⓜ️ 🇺🇸🦅 (@1zzyzyx1) May 21, 2025
The immediate effect of it was seen in rural communities where hospitals already operate on thin margins. There were reduced services in hundreds of these facilities. Along with it, hirings were stopped amidst growing financial instability.
In the most severe cases, hospitals are considering closure.
“The $50 billion in federal funds set aside for rural hospitals won’t come close to offsetting the hundreds of billions in losses from Medicaid cuts,” Edwin Park told NBC. He is a research professor at Georgetown University.
Rural hospitals across the U.S. — many already hanging by a thread — could take a serious hit if a proposed Medicaid cut in the Senate’s domestic spending bill is signed into law. https://t.co/PNXzaRVbxt
— NBC News (@NBCNews) June 17, 2025
He emphasised that rural areas already face limited access to medical care and will be most disproportionately harmed.
In 2024, Trump and Vance collected most of their seats from rural votes, and they would like to keep the streak going for the 2026 midterm election. That’s why Vance quickly changed the tracks during his Georgia speech.
After defending his administration’s record on healthcare, he shifted to a more familiar talking point: undocumented immigration.
“Whether you’re in a big city or a small town, we’re going to fight for your access to health care… But if you’re an illegal alien, you do not deserve government-paid health care benefits. You need to get out of our country, and that’s simple as that,” Vance told the crowd.
Vance: “The only people that we say should not get free government healthcare benefits are illegal aliens and those who refuse to try to even look for a job.”
Does the Vice President not know that we don’t have free government healthcare for all? pic.twitter.com/wW5gIochzj
— The Bulwark (@BulwarkOnline) August 21, 2025
The Trump administration has ties and again blamed illegal immigrants for all the job losses and disturbances in healthcare, rather than talking about the lack of funds due to major tax breaks for the wealthiest in the nation.
Critics argue that the administration is downplaying the impact of its own policies on communities that make up a core part of its political base.
The cuts will continue to ripple through the healthcare system. The clash between rhetoric and reality may grow harder for Trump and Vance to manage, more so if more rural hospitals are forced to shut their doors.
