WASHINGTON — Medicaid is emerging as a flashpoint in Senate contests across six states, with Democrats attacking Republicans for backing federal funding reductions and promising to restore the money if elected in November. In recent debates in Alaska, Georgia, Iowa, Maine, Michigan and South Carolina, Democratic candidates criticized their opponents’ votes for the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which is set to reduce federal support for Medicaid by hundreds of billions of dollars over the coming years. Republicans have countered by highlighting a $50 billion rural health fund added to the legislation late in negotiations. The fund was intended to shore up support among GOP lawmakers worried about the bill’s effects on health programs, including rural hospitals. The debate is playing out amid broader concerns about household costs. In Warren, Ohio, congressional candidate Maria Juric held a health care town hall in September. Denise Barber, a 68-year-old retired steelworker, said rising gasoline costs and health care needs in her family have her considering a return to part-time work, three years after retiring. The politics of the bill have also exposed divisions among Republicans. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine voted to advance the legislation but opposed its final passage. In defending her position, she pointed to the rural health fund. For voters in these closely watched races, the dispute puts a concrete question at the center of the campaign: whether the rural funding in the law can offset the much larger Medicaid reductions — and whether candidates will be held accountable for their votes as costs continue to pressure families and communities.