Trump Administration Funds ICE Beyond Top Global Armed Forces While Medicaid Loses Over $1 Trillion

A jarring budget reality has emerged from Washington: the immigration enforcement agency is about to receive funding comparable to a military superpower, while healthcare for low-income Americans faces cuts exceeding £748 billion ($1.02 trillion). ICE's budget for 2026 is projected to reach approximately £22 billion ($30 billion)—more than Poland, Italy, Australia, or Canada spend on their entire militaries.

If ICE were its own country, it would rank among the top 15 globally for military spending. Meanwhile, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act—signed by President Trump last July—is cutting roughly £748 billion ($1.02 trillion) from Medicaid over the next decade.

The Bonus Controversy

During a House Judiciary Committee hearing, Representative Jared Moskowitz from Florida challenged the Republican budget proposal, which allocated £629 million ($858 million) solely for ICE employee bonuses. Moskowitz calculated that splitting this sum amongst ICE's roughly 20,000 employees would yield approximately £30,800 ($42,000) per person—compared to the average American year-end bonus of £1,833 ($2,500).

'That's like a $40,000 bonus to every employee in all of ICE,' Moskowitz said during the hearing. 'The average Christmas bonus is $2,500, but they want to give $42,000.' He proposed reducing the bonus allocation to £367 million ($500 million), though Republican witnesses defended the payments as essential for recruitment and retention during challenging times for the agency.

Healthcare Cuts Impact Millions

The Congressional Budget Office projects the legislation will slash federal spending on Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Programme by £748 billion ($1.02 trillion), resulting in at least 10.5 million people losing coverage by 2034. Another 3.1 million will lose Medicaid coverage under marketplace plans, and roughly 4.2 million more could become uninsured when expanded premium tax credits expire.

Starting in January 2027, most Medicaid recipients aged 19 to 64 must prove they are working, training, or volunteering for at least 80 hours monthly to maintain coverage. This work requirement alone accounts for £239 billion ($325.8 billion) in cuts over the decade. The law also mandates biannual eligibility checks instead of annual reviews, which policy analysts warn will remove eligible individuals due to administrative burdens.

The legislation caps state provider taxes used to fund Medicaid, costing states an estimated £140 billion ($191 billion) over ten years. Without this revenue, states face difficult choices: raise other taxes, cut public services, or reduce Medicaid coverage.

Rural Hospitals Face Closure

Rural hospitals are particularly vulnerable, with an average operating margin of just 3.1 per cent in 2023 and nearly half operating at a loss. Over 300 rural hospitals currently face serious closure risk, according to the National Rural Health Association. The legislation provides £36.7 billion ($50 billion) over five years for rural hospitals—approximately £3.3 million ($4.5 million) annually per facility, insufficient to offset the £748 billion ($1.02 trillion) in Medicaid cuts.

Closures have already begun. Community Hospital in McCook, Nebraska, announced its closure last July, citing uncertainty over Medicaid funding. Seattle Children's Hospital eliminated 154 jobs and over 350 positions, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Hospital in New York laid off more than 400 staff, and Blue Mountain Hospital in Oregon cut nine positions, directly attributing the reductions to healthcare cuts.

ICE Receives Unprecedented Funding

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act provides ICE with £55 billion ($75 billion) in supplemental funding through September 2029, in addition to its regular £8.3 billion ($11.3 billion) budget for fiscal 2026. Distributed evenly over four years, ICE would have nearly £22 billion ($30 billion) annually—triple recent funding levels. Of the supplemental funding, £33 billion ($45 billion) targets building immigration detention facilities capable of holding 100,000 people simultaneously, according to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

ICE's 2026 budget exceeds what Poland, Italy, Canada, and Turkey spent on their militaries in 2025. Only 14 countries worldwide spend more on their militaries than America is allocating to immigration enforcement.

The administration aims to deport one million people annually—268 per cent more than previously—through a 'wartime recruitment' drive with £73.4 million ($100 million) allocated for first-year hiring. The goal is to hire 10,000 new ICE employees in 2026 alone, more than doubling the roughly 20,000 employed in December 2025.

Competing Priorities

Supporters of increased immigration enforcement argue substantial funding is necessary for border security, including personnel, facilities, and operations. They maintain competitive compensation packages are essential for recruiting qualified staff. Critics, however, question funding immigration enforcement at levels exceeding most countries' entire militaries while implementing the largest healthcare cuts in American history.

The American Medical Association and other medical organisations have condemned the healthcare reductions, warning they will devastate patient access and destabilise the system. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the legislation will add £2.5 trillion ($3.4 trillion) to the national debt by 2034, primarily due to tax cuts benefiting high earners, despite massive social programme cuts.