President Donald Trump has proposed a $1.5 trillion defence budget for 2027, a 42% increase from the previous year, while slashing healthcare and other non-defence spending. The budget, released last week, cuts the Department of Health and Human Services by 12% ($15 billion) and the entire non-defence budget by 10%.
Critics argue the priorities are misplaced, as Americans already face high rates of avoidable deaths and poor healthcare access. The US has nearly double the rate of treatable-condition deaths compared to countries like Spain, France, Japan and Australia. Americans are also the most likely among wealthy nations to skip medical appointments or prescriptions due to cost.
Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' last year cut over $1 trillion from Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act over ten years, potentially pushing 15 million Americans off health insurance. The new budget continues this trend, with the president stating at a White House Easter reception that 'daycare, Medicaid, Medicare' should be handled by states, calling them 'little scams'. The White House later deleted a video of these remarks.
The defence hike is partly funded by cuts to programmes like low-income electricity assistance, where the White House claims $4 billion was lost to fraud including payments to deceased individuals. However, analysts say the cuts are insufficient to cover the defence increase, and further reductions to the social safety net are likely given Republican aversion to tax rises.
Trump's budget also includes $4.5 trillion in tax cuts over ten years, benefiting the richest 10% of households by an average of $13,622 per year. The message to ordinary Americans, critics say, is that their needs are secondary to military spending and tax breaks for the wealthy.
