New Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s proposed budget for this fiscal year hacks away at funding for all state agencies and local governments, but the axe fell particularly hard on the state’s health spending — including unprecedented cuts to the Medicaid program.

Medicaid provides health care for low-income and disabled New Yorkers, and nearly 21 percent of residents in the Bronx rely on it for their medical coverage, according to the Department of Health — more than in any other borough.

Cuomo’s budget, which he unveiled on Feb. 1, would reduce the state’s Medicaid spending by $2.85 billion.

“This is an extremely drastic cut. The most drastic that’s ever happened before,” said Robert Lederer, a research and policy analyst for The Bronx Health Link. Since the state’s Medicaid funds are matched by the federal government, the total funding would be about double what the governor’s proposed. “You just can’t cut that much without injuring,” Lederer said.

Cuomo’s budget did not detail where, exactly, the money would be stripped from. He’s left that in the hands of a Medicaid Redesign Team, which has until March 1 to come up with solutions to cut back spending.

That could mean the cutting back of services for Medicaid recipients, Lederer said. New York State is one of the few in the country that offers so-called “optional” Medicaid benefits, which include prescription drug, dental and eye care coverage, which some have proposed eliminating to save money.

Other ideas to cut costs include denying emergency care for undocumented immigrants and covering fewer low-income pregnant women by lowering the income level that’s required to qualify.

Local health institutions could also be hit if the Redesign Team decides to reduce the reimbursement rate for Medicaid patients. “Any of these cuts could be really devastating to the Bronx,” Lederer said.

Cuomo has cited soaring spending and “years of unsustainable growth,” as his reason for targeting the program. “We simply cannot afford to keep spending at our current rate,” the governor said in a statement. “Just like New York’s families and businesses have had to do, New York State must face economic reality.”

But Lederer says there are other ways the state could cut back, like making the Medicaid enrollment process more efficient or focusing on areas of health spending like prescription drug costs. “There are other strategies that can lower costs without injuring services and access to care,” he said.