The defining feature of the Senate Republican healthcare bill is that, over the long term, it would absolutely decimate Medicaid—more so even than the House legislation passed last month. And it accomplishes this wrecking job with surprising efficiency, a mere six lines of text in a 142-page document. Senate healthcare bill Here's what that translates to. Like their House colleagues, Senate GOPers want to cap the amount of money Washington gives the states each year to pay for each Medicaid patient (currently, there's no limit to how much the feds can spend).