Michael Hiltzik: Trump makes his most aggressive move yet to gut Medicaid

Rebuffed by the courts in its previous efforts to gut Medicaid, the Trump administration teed up a new, far-reaching attack on the program that could affect the health of millions of low-income Americans.

Officially unveiled Thursday under the Orwellian label "Healthy Adult Opportunity," the new rules would encourage states to cut benefits and narrow eligibility for residents who qualify under the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion provision.

Although the administration asserted that the rules would give states "new levels of flexibility" in running their Medicaid programs, in fact they would lock them into annual caps for Medicaid that could not be exceeded. In essence, the rules are tantamount to block granting Medicaid - that is, setting a concrete budget -