House Votes To Block Medicaid Cuts

WASHINGTON — The House voted yesterday to block the Bush administration from cutting federal spending on Medicaid health care for the poor by $13 billion during the next five years. President Bush has threatened a veto, but supporters have enough votes in the House to override him, and maybe in the Senate, too.Two thirds of the Republicans joined every voting Democrat in the 349–62 vote to impose a one-year moratorium on seven rules changes that the administration argues are needed to rectify waste and abuse in the state-federal partnership to provide health care to the poor.