From centrists worried about Medicaid cuts to conservative hard-liners demanding steeper spending reductions, Senate GOP leaders face a tricky balancing act.

With deficit concerns top of mind as Senate Republicans go deep into reconciliation bill-drafting mode, Medicare is increasingly coming up as a potential pay-for, particularly with several GOP senators looking to scale back the size of proposed Medicaid and food stamp cuts while expanding some tax breaks.

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), a member of the Senate Finance Committee, said Thursday that GOP lawmakers are looking at changes to Medicare to root out waste, fraud and abuse. Republican senators are taking a closer look at finding savings in Medicare to increase the total amount of deficit reduction in President Trump’s “big,