Fact-check: Sanders says 15 million lost health insurance because of Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill'

May 7, 2026 - 23:10

Senator Bernie Sanders stated during a recent committee hearing that 15 million Americans lost their health insurance as a direct result of what he called the "Big Beautiful Bill" pushed by former President Donald Trump. The Vermont independent made the comment while questioning Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. about the administration's healthcare policies.

The claim requires scrutiny. The number Sanders cited appears to reference projections from analyses of earlier Republican healthcare proposals, not a single bill that actually became law. The American Health Care Act, which passed the House in 2017 but failed in the Senate, was estimated by the Congressional Budget Office to result in 14 million people losing coverage by 2018 and 23 million by 2026. However, that bill was never enacted.

Sanders appears to be conflating multiple proposals and using a round figure that does not match any single piece of legislation that took effect. While the Trump administration did take actions that affected the insurance market, such as expanding short-term plans and ending cost-sharing reduction payments, no single bill bearing the name "Big Beautiful Bill" was signed into law. The actual number of people who lost coverage during the Trump years is debated, but it does not align with the specific 15 million figure Sanders used. Fact-checkers have rated similar claims as misleading because they attribute consequences to a law that never passed.