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Utah is testing the Trump administration’s dreams of limiting Medicaid spending

The Trump administration is contemplating some time-sensitive questions about how far states can go in shrinking Medicaid spending, as its top health officials seek to remold the low-income insurance program into a more conservative shape.

It all revolves around how the Department of Health and Human Services responds to a request from Utah, which is seeking to expand its Medicaid program less than three weeks from now. But despite pressing questions from Democrats, HHS Secretary Alex Azar provided few hints yesterday to the House Energy and Commerce Health subcommittee in a hearing on President Donald Trump’s budget request.