Nearly 12 million estimated to lose health coverage under Trump budget bill

Republicans are scrambling to pass the Big Beautiful Bill through the senate ahead of a self-imposed 4 July deadline.

One critic, Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, announced on Sunday he would not seek reelection after voting against the president’s signature legislation.

It narrowly cleared a preliminary vote Saturday. Party leaders scrambled to win over lawmakers concerned about debt and the bill’s healthcare cuts, among other issues.

The assessment from the Congressional Budget Office, a non-partisan federal agency, may complicate Republican efforts to pass President Donald Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” in the coming days.

A sprawling budget bill in the US Senate could cut health insurance coverage for nearly 12 million Americans and add nearly $3.3tn (£2.4tn) in new debt, according to new estimates.

Democratic lawmakers have led criticism of the bill. The CBO numbers calculate $1tn in cuts to healthcare funding if the bill passes.

The latest version of the bill was advanced in a 51-49 Senate vote on Saturday night. Two Republicans joined Democrats in opposing the move.

While senators voted to open debate on the bill, it is unclear whether it has enough support to ultimately pass.

Republicans have a small majority in the Senate with 53 seats. With Vice-President JD Vance holding the tie-breaker vote, the party can only afford three defectors.

Democratic senators are using chamber rules to force a reading of the nearly 1,000-page bill in an attempt to delay a vote on its passage.

Under Senate rules, lawmakers now have 20 hours allocated to debate the bill. It is expected that Democrats will use all of their time to further delay a vote, while Republicans try to speed up the process.

Lawmakers could also propose amendments to the bill. If the revised bill passes the Senate, it still must return to the House of Representatives for final approval before landing on the president’s desk.

Trump has pushed for the bill to clear Congress before a self-imposed 4 July deadline. The White House said failure to pass it would be the “ultimate betrayal”.

Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky has said he opposes the bill because it raises the US debt limit. Tillis voiced concern that the bill would cost his state billions of dollars in healthcare funding.

Tillis cited cuts the bill proposes to Medicaid, a healthcare programme that is relied on by millions of elderly, disabled and low-income Americans.

These cuts have become a hotly debated issue on both sides of the aisle.

Democratic Senator Mark Warner told CNN on Sunday that the bill will negatively affect millions. “This is tax cuts for the wealthiest to end up cutting healthcare, plain and simple,” he said.

Under the bill, more than 80% of Americans would get a tax cut next year, though wealthier taxpayers would benefit most, including as a percentage of income, according to the non-partisan Tax Policy Center.

Some Republican senators have defended the bill as a needed step for the US government. Senator Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma told NBC on Sunday that the legislation aims to eliminate fraud, waste and abuse.

He argued that many Americans using Medicaid are not under the poverty line.

“We don’t pay people in this country to be lazy,” he said. “We want to give them an opportunity. And when they’re going through a hard time, we want to give them a helping hand.”