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Take action to protect Medicaid, Marketplace, and Medicare!

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June 11, 2025

We are facing a national crisis in health care. House Republicans recently passed their budget bill – the cartoonishly named “One Big Beautiful Bill” – by just one vote along party lines. There were no public hearings, and House members were not afforded time to read the bill before they chose to vote on it. This bill would slash funding for all of our most vital health programs: Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act’s Marketplace, and yes – Medicare.
 
Roughly 15 million low- and moderate-income people would lose health coverage and become uninsured under the House Republicans’ sweeping and draconian health care agenda. Let’s be clear about one thing: there was no electoral “mandate” to cut healthcare programs. No one campaigned on getting rid of your health insurance or on driving up the costs of your health insurance so you end up paying more. So why, then, are these items in the Republican budget bill?
 
These cuts exist purely for the purpose of helping to pay for massive tax cuts for the wealthy. In other words, this bill would create a massive transfer of wealth from low- and moderate-income people and families, to the wealthiest people and corporations. There is no health policy that can justify these changes.
 
It is vile, and it is deeply dangerous.
 
We know that the end result of these cuts to healthcare programs will be that people will live sicker, and they will die younger from preventable conditions. Health insurance is crucial for giving people access to preventive, primary, and specialty care. Early detection and treatment saves lives. Health insurance coverage also helps fund the health care system that we all depend upon. Reducing coverage and creating more uninsured will devastate our healthcare systems.
 
Senator Jodi Ernst (R-Iowa) spoke the quiet part out loud when she expressed callous disregard for the impacts of this bill. At a rare Town Hall meeting in Iowa, when confronted by frightened constituents who fear that the Medicaid cuts could be fatal, Senator Ernst made light of her constituents’ concerns by saying “we are all going to die.” This callous and glib response is the sort of answer one might expect from a psychopath, and indicates that she does not care about quality of life for those who will suffer. Shame on her. Unfortunately, Sen. Ernst is clearly not the only member of Congress who has this attitude. In fact, this attitude of cruelty and disinterest is reflected in the House Republicans’ budget bill and their priorities for funding cuts and tax breaks.
 
Below is information about some of the provisions of this dangerous budget bill, and what’s next in the process and how you can help.

READ ON!

Guest Commentary about House Budget and Medicaid Cuts

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June 3, 2025

Dear friend,

In today’s The News-Gazette, you can see the Guest Commentary that I wrote about the House Republican’s Budget bill and the cuts to Medicaid and other health and food programs.

You can read my commentary below, or you can find it on The News-Gazette’s website here.

Don’t believe political spin about not-so-beautiful bill

House Republicans narrowly passed their budget bill – the cartoonishly named “One Big Beautiful Bill” – that would slash funding for Medicaid, Medicare, and the Affordable Care Act (ACA). These cuts would force around 15 million Americans off their health coverage, and raise healthcare costs for millions more, all in order to permanently fund tax breaks for billionaires and big corporations.

This budget bill was rushed through overnight, and while House Republicans admit this is one of the most consequential pieces of legislation in a generation, they voted for it without getting a full analysis of the proposal or holding a single hearing on the impacts of the biggest cut to Medicaid ever. Even without a full accounting yet, we know enough to know that the consequences will be devastating – from millions more uninsured, to increased premiums and co-pays, and more bureaucratic barriers to get and stay on coverage, to reduced benefits and scaled back services resulting from cuts to the hospitals, clinics and other providers on which we all rely.

The Senate has millions of reasons to reject this approach to a budget bill. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) wrote in a New York Times op-ed that slashing health care for the working poor “is both morally wrong and politically suicidal.”  He stated “Republicans need to open their eyes: Our voters support social insurance programs,” Hawley wrote. “More than that, our voters depend on those programs.” 

No one campaigned on the biggest reduction of health coverage in history, nor on massive Medicaid cuts, nor on cuts to the ACA or Medicare, nor on higher health premiums and co-payments, nor on cuts to the SNAP food assistance program — but that’s what House Republicans voted for in this budget.

This isn’t a political game — this is literally life and death for low-income working families, people with disabilities, pregnant women and their babies, children, veterans, and people who rely on rural hospitals across the country — all of whom will pay the price of this disastrous bill for generations, while the billionaires reap the benefits.

READ ON!

We are fighting for our lives!

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May 22, 2025

The situation is dire.
Early this morning, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill” Act – the budget bill that includes a sweeping proposal that slashes billions of dollars from the Medicaid program and imposes dangerous new work requirements for Medicaid. If this is enacted, the bill will strip health insurance – and health care – away from millions of low-income people across the country.

Of course, the House barely passed this bill with enough votes, but all the YES votes were by Republicans. Let’s be very clear: this is one-sided, one party bill. There is no bipartisanship here.

CCHCC strongly condemns this legislation, which prioritizes tax breaks for billionaires and the largest corporations over the health and dignity of low-income communities. The deep cuts to Medicaid included in this bill will result in fewer people being covered, fewer healthcare services available and accessible, and a weaker healthcare system for everyone.

There is nothing beautiful about this bill. There is nothing beautiful about cruelty. There is nothing beautiful about the massive wealth transfer that is the primary purpose of this bill – but it’s a wealth transfer from the poorest to the wealthiest in our nation. There is absolutely no reason to make the tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans permanent. How much more do they need? This is just the most malevolent form of greed and avarice at the expense of people’s health, and possibly their lives.

One of the most harmful provisions in this bill is a national mandate for Medicaid work requirements. Bureaucratic barriers like work requirements do NOT promote employment. In fact, 93% of all people on Medicaid who can work, are working! These requirements punish people who are already working in low-wage jobs, or who have disabilities, chronic conditions, or caregiving responsibilities. Caps to state Medicaid taxes and other changes to the program will result in slashing billions of more dollars to states and these will force states to make difficult decisions on who gets care and what care and services are available. Work requirements for Medicaid will costs all the states millions of dollars as they will have to set up the infrastructure to manage these requirements, and they will have to hire more people to do the work of monitoring Medicaid beneficiaries. What an absolutely ridiculous use of money!

There are other harmful provisions that undermine protections helping individuals obtain and retain Medicaid and Marketplace coverage. These provisions prevent states from spending their own funds to provide health insurance to immigrants, for example. Insuring as much of the population as possible improves a community’s and a state’s health overall, and decreases public health crises because health issues – including from infectious diseases – can be prevented, detected early, and treated early, limiting the spread of communicable diseases. So much for states’ rights.

READ ON!

URGENT ACTION NEEDED! Contact Congress to say NO to Medicaid cuts

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May 21, 2025

This is another urgent call to action because the budget bill that would drastically cut Medicaid and SNAP is advancing.
 
The House Rules Committee convened at 1 a.m. this morning to try to pass the Republican’s budget bill, which calls for the largest cuts to Medicaid in history in order to make tax cuts permanent for the ultra-wealthy.
 
Timeline: Trump has said that he wants this budget bill passed by Memorial Day, Monday, May 26. Right now, the House Rules Committee is trying to get this bill out of committee and then to the House floor for a vote. If that happens, the next step will be that the House and Senate have to reconcile their separate versions of the bill in order to pass it. In other words, these next few days are crucially important.
 
Please see immediately below for how to take action to help prevent cuts to Medicaid and SNAP, and then further below for information and resources.
 
How to take action: Crucial decisions are being made NOW, so lawmakers need to hear from you NOW.  
 
You can CALL your member of Congress on this call-in line provided by SEIU: 866-426-2631. You can deliver a message saying something like: “Medicaid must be safeguarded, not gutted. No cuts to Medicaid! No work requirements, eligibility changes, or reduced funding. A cut is a cut and it will have devastating consequences.” And if you have a personal story or if you rely on Medicaid and/or SNAP, please feel free to say so during your call.

READ ON!

URGENT – Tell Congress: No Medicaid Cuts for Billionaire Tax Breaks!

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May 15, 2025

This is an urgent call to action.
 
House Republicans have released the text of their budget reconciliation bill and, as expected, it calls for the largest cut to Medicaid in history.
 
According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the bill would result in 13.7 million Americans losing their healthcare coverage. The sole purpose of this drastic cut is to permanently fund tax cuts for the ultra-rich.
 
These GOP-proposed cuts will have massive repercussions for our healthcare system. People will still need healthcare, but state and local governments will have far less money to help meet those needs. Emergency rooms will see more uninsured individuals. Some hospitals and clinics may not be able to survive these cuts.
 
Republicans who promised not to cut Medicaid benefits should vote NO. And the President must uphold his promise not to cut Medicaid.
 
We need to take action to tell Congress to stop taking healthcare coverage and healthcare away from millions of Americans just to further enrich the wealthiest few in our nation!
 
Please see below to learn how you can take action NOW. We are also providing important resources and information on Medicaid for those of you who would like to learn more.
 
Take Action NOW!
 
Making phone calls is the most important way that you can take action NOW! Legislators do track the calls that they receive, and note the number of opponents and supporters who are making those calls.
 
We are urging three actions: a) a call to the chair of the House Energy & Commerce Committee; b) call to Illinois Congressional Representatives; and c) adding your name to a petition to protect Medicaid.

READ ON AND TAKE ACTION!