Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Representative Debbie Dingell (D-MI-06), Chair of the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee and former Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure joined Meena Bewtra with Doctors for America, and Protect Our Care as part of Save Our Hospitals Week. Republicans are doubling down on the largest health care cuts in history so they can fund tax breaks for the wealthy and large corporations.
Yesterday, Senate Republicans unveiled their version of the GOP tax bill, exposing that they aim to make even larger cuts to Medicaid. As a result, 16 million Americans will be at risk of losing life-saving health care coverage. Not only will hardworking families lose coverage, but 338 rural hospitals across the country will be at risk of shutting down. As a result, Americans across the country would have to travel further for care and face longer wait times. If Republicans succeed, they’ll strip care and vital services from small towns and rural communities across the country, force job cuts, cripple state economies, and throw our health care system into chaos. In light of Republican attacks on hospitals and health care, Protect Our Care released a new ad and report on the damage the Republicans’ tax bill would do to hospitals and vital services around the country.
“This bill is getting even uglier and the devastation it will cause for millions of Americans is getting even worse,” said U.S. Representative Debbie Dingell (D-MI-06). “In many of our smaller towns, hospitals are the lifeblood of a community. They’re the largest employer and a source of pride. These are real human beings, and there are human stories behind so many people who are going to be impacted by this. People will have to drive further for routine and life-saving care. People won’t go to the doctor at all. This is the truth: people will die. We’re going to keep fighting to make sure every American understands what’s at stake.”
“When hospitals or hospital services shut down, we all lose access to lifesaving care,” said former Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure. “There is never a time to enact the largest cut to both Medicaid and the marketplaces just to give more tax breaks to the rich. Doing so will destabilize our hospitals, which, in turn, would harm our healthcare workforce and economy. I urge the Senators to think about the harm this bill will have on our nation’s hospitals, especially rural ones and children’s hospitals, and the millions of healthcare workers who provide all of us with necessary life-saving care.”
“The cuts to health care that are part of this so-called big, beautiful bill will impact every single one of us,” said Meena Bewtra MD, PhD, MPH with Doctors for America. “The cost of health care will go up for everyone. Millions will simply be unable to afford health care or lose their coverage. Millions more will ration or skip important doctor visits or medications because the cost is too high. And even if you can afford health care, your hospital may simply no longer exist. This affects all of us, every single one of us, our children, our families, our neighbors, our communities. It doesn’t matter who you are or who you voted for, because health and sickness doesn’t care who you are.”
“The GOP bill is a handout to billionaires at the expense of families, small towns, and seniors who rely on hospitals as lifelines,” said Protect Our Care Chair Leslie Dach. “If Republicans get their way, communities across the country will lose access to emergency rooms, cancer care, maternity wards, and more. Jobs will vanish, state economies will suffer, and our entire health care system will spiral into crisis. And yet every single Republican has lied to their constituents and caved by voting for this bill. During this Save Our Hospitals week, we’re making it clear that Americans are not going to sit by while Republicans dismantle their care to enrich the ultra-wealthy.”