A little-known fact outside of the health nerds circle is that some providers actually get pretty high payment rates now for seeing Medicaid enrollees. Between the lines: What's been a brewing think-tank fight over Medicaid payments to hospitals and doctors could soon spill onto the main political stage should Republicans decide this is the most politically palatable way to cut the program's spending by hundreds of billions of dollars.

In announcing their intentions to move forward with a mammoth one bill budget plan that will supposedly sweep up

Republicans played defense, saying slashing healthcare funding would spare people. Democrats said harm is the only possible consequence of $880 billion in cuts.