Medicaid systems down in 20 states including NY after funding freeze
NEW YORK - In at least 20 states, including New York, staff trying to access Medicaid and Head Start funding through payment websites Tuesday morning were locked out by what the White House called an "outage" after President Donald Trump's administration announced a federal funding freeze on Tuesday.
By late Tuesday, some states and Head Start providers reported their access to the sites had been restored.
The funding freeze was temporarily halted by a federal judge late Tuesday, but the disruption showed how reliant programs serving the most vulnerable Americans are on the federal government. The White House would not elaborate on the cause of the outages — and whether they were connected to the directive.
Officials in several states said their staff struggled to access the website used to request funds for Medicaid, a federal program that provides health care coverage for about 80 million of the poorest of Americans, including millions of children.
Commenting on issues with the Medicaid site, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on X that the administration is " aware of the Medicaid website portal outage."
What is Trump saying?
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 28: White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt holds her first news conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House on January 28, 2025 in Washington, DC. At 27-years-old, Leavitt is the youngest White House
A reporter pressed Karoline Leavitt, the White House’s press secretary about the issue Tuesday, saying, "It wasn't clear to me whether you were saying that no Medicaid would be cut off. Obviously, a lot of this goes to states before it goes to individuals and so forth, so are you guaranteeing here that no individual now on Medicaid would see a cut-off because of the cost?
Leavitt responded, "I'll check back on that and get back to you," ignoring a shouted question about the Medicaid portals being down as she left the podium.
NYC Mayor Eric Adams stated on X that his office is "evaluating the full impact of the federal administration's OMB announcement."
"We're in touch with our federal counterparts as we monitor this situation closely and will advocate firmly on behalf of New Yorkers whose lives are impacted," Adams added.
Will billions for Medicaid be halted?
What we don't know:
Medicaid is notably not exempt from a White House directive to pause all federal grants and loans by the end of day Tuesday.
Medicare and Social Security, however, were spared in the memo.
By the numbers:
The U.S. Health and Human Services agency doles out over a half trillion dollars to states in a joint partnership to run Medicaid, the nation’s health care coverage for about 80 million of the poorest of Americans, including millions of children.
Medicaid payments
FILE-In this photo illustration, a person holds a wallet filled with $20 dollar bills. (Photo Illustration by Thomas Trutschel/Photothek via Getty Images)
A spokesperson for Illinois Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s office said the state’s agencies have reported issues accessing the website used to request disbursement for Medicaid payments.
HHS did not immediately respond to questions about the spending freeze and whether Medicaid payments would continue.
States on average receive about 30% of their revenues from the federal government, according to Federal Funds Information for States.
The largest grant program is Medicaid. But it’s unclear whether the Trump administration’s pause will interrupt the flow of Medicaid reimbursement funds to states.
This is a breaking news report. Stay with FOX 5 NY as this story develops.
Medicare vs. Medicaid
(Photo By Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Medicare is federal health insurance for people 65+ or younger individuals with specific disabilities. It's run by the federal government, so coverage and costs are the same nationwide. Medicare is funded by payroll taxes, Congress-approved funds, and monthly premiums.
Medicaid is a joint federal and state program for people with limited income. States manage Medicaid programs under federal guidelines, so eligibility and benefits vary by state.