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In News

Sabotage: Trump’s New Rules Plus GOP’s Big Ugly Bill Are Simply A Backdoor Repeal of the ACA

Washington, D.C. – Republicans are continuing their all-out assault on the Affordable Care Act. On Friday, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule to shorten the Affordable Care Act enrollment period and added miles of red tape to prevent hard-working Americans from obtaining affordable coverage. According to CMS, up to 2 million people will lose coverage as a result. This news comes as Republicans push forward their big, ugly bill, hiking premiums and ripping away health care from millions to hand out tax breaks for billionaires and corporations. 

In response, Protect Our Care President Brad Woodhouse issued a statement:

“Donald Trump and Republicans couldn’t repeal the ACA outright, so now they’re trying to dismantle it piece by piece – through administrative sabotage and the big ugly bill. By slashing the enrollment period and adding new barriers to sign up for coverage, the Trump administration is continuing its campaign of sabotage against the Affordable Care Act. These changes are deliberately designed to strip health care from nearly two million Americans. It will hit hard-working families the hardest and will have devastating consequences for communities across the country – all while Trump and Republicans are prioritizing tax breaks for the wealthy.”

ashoup
In News

HEADLINES: Across the Nation, Everyday Americans Speak Out Against Republicans’ Health Care Cuts, Warn Senators of Consequences

Over the past week, health care advocates and everyday Americans from coast to coast have been sounding the alarm over the GOP spending bill that will kick 16 million Americans off their health care in order to hand out tax breaks to billionaires and big corporations. The Republican bill makes the biggest cut to American health care in history, decimating Medicaid and dismantling the Affordable Care Act. People are yelling from the rooftops, warning about the devastation the GOP plan will cause—seniors will be thrown out of nursing homes, rural hospitals will shutter, children and people with disabilities will lose coverage, and people with serious medical conditions like cancer will be forced to stop treatment. Every single community will feel the effects of Donald Trump and Republicans’ big, ugly bill.

ALASKA

Anchorage Daily News: Opinion: Medicaid Cuts Will Put Alaska Hospitals and Alaskans’ Health Care at Risk. Our Senators Need to Step Up.
Philip Hofstetter, AuD is the CEO of Petersburg Medical Center, an independent community critical access hospital serving Petersburg Borough in Southeast Alaska.

  • “I have worked for over 30 years to improve health outcomes for rural Alaska communities in both Northwest and Southeast Alaska. All over this state, the truth is that all Alaskans depend on people who depend on Medicaid. They are our relatives, our friends, our childcare providers, the people who fish and hunt and farm to feed us. They are our neighbors. Regardless of what talking points come out of Washington, D.C., the data is clear: the majority of the people covered by Medicaid already work full-time. And when they are uninsured, the impact ripples across entire communities.”

Anchorage Daily News: Opinion: Big Beautiful Bill Is a Big Betrayal to Alaska and Alaskans. 

  • “Three Trump cabinet officials concluded their recent visit to Alaska with an opinion piece in the Anchorage Daily News pitching an energy renaissance in our state that only the “Big Beautiful Bill” can bring about. But we Alaskans should question what these Outsiders are selling. For starters, what the Trump-endorsed bill fundamentally does is provide more tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans, paid for mainly by raiding Medicaid, Medicare and food stamps. It would increase the federal deficit by an estimated $3 trillion.”

Anchorage Daily News: Opinion: Planned Parenthood Is Crucial to Protecting Alaska Survivors of Trafficking and MMIR.

  • “Survivors rely on low-barrier, trauma-informed services to access care without fear, shame, or financial hardship. Removing this access would strip away one of the few consistent lifelines available to those navigating violence and exploitation. If we are truly committed to building a safer, more just Alaska, we must ensure that all people — especially those at highest risk — can access care that honors their dignity, safety, and humanity. Preserving Medicaid eligibility for Planned Parenthood is essential to supporting survivors and safeguarding our communities with the respect they deserve.”

Fairbanks Daily News Miner: Opinion: What Would Don Young Have Done? 

  • “It is important for Alaskans to understand that there is no way the state will be able to make up the difference for these cuts — we simply do not have the budgetary flexibility. Even when the 90-10 revenue split goes into effect in 10 years, that will not cover the entire loss of Medicaid funding, and in the meantime, we will be left in an even more financially vulnerable position with the delayed effective date of that provision. Put succinctly, Alaskans will die because of these Medicaid cuts.”

Alaska Beacon: Opinion: The Big, the Bad and the Ugly, Even for Alaskans

  • “The Republican bill also cuts $793 billion from Medicaid. This would result in 279,000 Alaskans (that’s approximately 38 % of our population) being at risk of insufficient health coverage. Jared Kosin, president and CEO of the Alaska Hospital & Healthcare Association, said if Congress makes substantial cuts to Medicaid, ‘It would be catastrophic, not only for the health care system, [but] for Alaskans across our entire state.’ Add in the elimination of renewable energy tax credits, you get a lot ‘ugly’ in this bill that negatively affects Alaskans.”

Alaska Beacon: Alaskans Rally Across the State for Democracy and ‘No Kings’ Protest Against Trump

  • “Stephanie Schulling held a protest sign reading, “no sign is big enough for all the reasons I’m here.” She said as a social worker, she feels an ethical responsibility to show up and protest ‘the issues with people being disappeared, the issues with DOGE (the Department of Government Efficiency), the issues with the possibility of Medicaid, Social Security, you know, all those sorts of safety nets going away. It’s unthinkable.’”

Anchorage Daily News: Thousands Show for Anti-Trump Protest in Downtown Anchorage; Crowds Rally in Other Alaska Communities

  • “I’m fighting for democracy,” said 68-year-old Chris Evans. “I’m fighting for women’s rights, equality, fairness, no hypocrisy, double-standards. I’m just fighting for all of it to have our country united again, and all be on the same page being American.”

Alaska’s News Source: ‘Keep Our Democracy Going’: Thousands Take to the Streets of Anchorage for ‘No Kings’ Protest

  • “‘There’s a real sense of community in Alaska and we’re here for each other and we want to see the best outcomes this new budget bill that’s coming out, [the] cuts to Medicaid is going to have an extreme ripple effect within Alaska and having our communities deeply affected,’ Protest Carly said.”

Alaska Native News: Homer Residents Rally to Protect South Peninsula Hospital and Medicaid. 

  • “Wednesday, more than 50 residents, caregivers, and health care advocates gathered in Karen Hornaday Park and marched to South Peninsula Hospital as part of Save Our Hospitals Week, raising their voices against federal proposals to slash Medicaid and Affordable Care Act funding. The rally called attention to the devastating impact these cuts would have on rural hospitals across Alaska, including South Peninsula Hospital—a nationally ranked Critical Access Hospital that provides essential services to the southern Kenai Peninsula.”

Homer News: Point Of View: Not Fishing For Favors — Alaskans Need Basic Health Care Access

  • “We work on boats, in processing plants, and on the docks, often in seasonal or contract jobs that do not come with insurance. Still, we show up and do the work without asking for special treatment. What we do need is access to basic health care. When you get hurt, a broken wrist or a torn knee, you cannot just push through it. That is why DenaliCare, Alaska’s version of Medicaid, matters. It helps people like me and thousands of other Alaskans get the care they need when buying private insurance just is not possible. Right now, that care is at risk.”

IOWA

TV Clips

  • KCCI: “Vigil” for Medicaid
  • WHO13: Advocates Hold a “Protect Our Care” Vigil Outside Senator Ernst’s Office  

USA Today/Yahoo News: Opinion: I Lived My Worst Nightmare – But Medicaid Made My Daughter’s 14 Months Possible

  • “I lived the gift of Medicaid, and I see the daily support Medicaid provides in our community. A deacon in my congregation is on Medicaid. He lives on a fixed income, so he walks to work and to church, and yet, he’s the first one there every Sunday morning. He makes the coffee. He prepares the communion trays. One Sunday, when a gentleman quietly weeped after the loss of his beloved wife of 72 years, this deacon gently placed his hand on his shoulder and held the communion tray until he was ready to be served. The patience and comfort our deacon showed that day is what Medicaid provides for Iowans. It doesn’t provide everything, just a gentle hand as we face the challenges of life.”

MAINE

TV Clips

  • WGME: Garrett Martin, CEO of the Maine Center of Economic Policy, Sits Down With CBS13 to Talk About Medicaid Cuts Threatening Rural Hospitals. 

Lewiston Sun Journal: Opinion: Medicaid Cuts a Disaster in the Making for Maine

  • “These cuts aren’t just an attack on health care — they’re an economic disaster in the making. Stripping people of their coverage will force more uninsured patients into emergency rooms, increasing costs for hospitals and taxpayers. Medicaid ensures that people can afford preventive care, reducing avoidable hospital admissions and keeping our workforce healthy. Slashing it will lead to financial strain on hospitals, higher insurance premiums and a less productive economy.”

Bangor Daily News: Opinion: Cutting Medicaid Will Harm Maine’s Most Vulnerable

  • “Sen. Susan Collins has a renewed opportunity to be a champion for people with disabilities by opposing these devastating cuts. In April, she voted with Democrats opposing the budget resolution that would likely require cuts in Medicaid programs. Now, with the Senate aiming to pass its version of a reconciliation package by July 4, the senator faces a critical decision. Will she support a bill that slashes essential programs like Medicaid, or will she stand up for the Maine families who rely on these services and have no meaningful alternatives?”

VIRGINIA

TV Clips

  • WRIC: Health Care Advocates Voice Opposition on Sears’ Silence on Medicaid Cuts

Richmond Free Press: Protesters Call Out Sears’ Silence on Medicaid Cuts

  • “Dozens of union workers, healthcare professionals and local residents rallied outside the Hippodrome Theater on Tuesday, June 17, where Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears held her election night party for the Virginia governor’s race.”

WEST VIRGINIA

TV Clips

  • WOWK: Medicaid and SNAP Benefits Facing Cuts, Advocates Ask for WV Senators’ Help

West Virginia Watch: WV Health Care Organizations Again Call On Capito, Justice Not To Support Cuts To Snap, Medicaid 

  • “Set up across the street from the federally funded Cabin Creek Health Care Center, advocates, clients and healthcare providers spoke out against the federal budget bill that – if passed in its current form – would cut $700 billion in Medicaid funding. Rally organizers said the cuts would be catastrophic for West Virginians who rely on the program, including 49,000 seniors, 196,000 children, and 86,000 people with disabilities.”

WV Public Broadcasting and West Virginia News: Medicaid Rally Protests Proposed Budget Cuts 

  • “Full time care-giver Mariah Plante from Wyoming County told the crowd how Medicaid is a lifeline for her disabled brother Matt. ‘Resources for families like ours are limited out where we live in the holler, but Medicaid provides his medical care, his eyeglasses, behavioral support, prescriptions and access to specialists that we could never afford on our own. Most importantly, Medicaid allows for us to care for Matt at home where he’s loved, not in a facility.’”

WCHS: West Virginians Rally Against Proposed $700 Billion Medicaid Cuts at Press Conference.

  • “‘There are seven hospitals that will probably close fairly quickly because they’re on razor-thin margins,’ Allen said. ‘When people in communities don’t have access to health care, that means if they go to the hospital, the hospitals are going to have uncompensated care. The hospitals cannot remain open without some form of payment.’”

WV Metro News: Community Groups: Watch Out for Congressional Changes to Medicaid and Snap.

  •  “‘Cutting Medicaid doesn’t just hurt patients; it threatens the jobs of the frontline healthcare workers who care for the patients. Some of the largest employers in the state are hospitals, nursing homes and home healthcare providers who rely on Medicaid to keep the doors open,’ McKinney said. ‘Cuts to Medicaid will mean layoffs, short staffing and increased pressure on an already strained healthcare workforce.’”

WDTV: Health Officials Hold Conference in Charleston, Talk Medicaid and Snap Concerns.

  • “‘Let me be absolutely clear, cuts to Medicaid- cuts our lifeline,’ Said McKinney. ‘In a state like ours, nearly 1 in 3 West Virginians rely on Medicaid. The consequences of federal cuts won’t be measured in spreadsheets, it’ll be measured in lost jobs, closed clinics, struggling families, unnecessary suffering, and people will die.’”

Charleston Gazette-Mail: ‘Devastating Consequences’: Local Advocates Urge Senate To Reject Proposed Snap Cuts

  • “‘Most of these people are working families, or families have dedicated their life to West Virginia’s workforce, who are now retired and raising grandfamilies,’ Alecia Allen, co-executive and clinical director at Keep Your Faith Corp., a Charleston community support group, said at a gathering Tuesday at the Cabin Creek Health Systems Westside Health clinic in Charleston to rally food and health care access support. ‘Those families need to be connected to healthy food.’”

Times-West Virginian: WV Health Care Organizations Again Call On Capito, Justice Not To Support Cuts To Snap, Medicaid

  • “‘Right now, as we stand here on the West Side of Charleston, West Virginia, in Washington, D.C., they are making cruel calculations,’ said Lida Shepherd, a representative of the American Friends Service Committee, which helped host the event. ‘ How big of a handout of our tax dollars can be given to the wealthiest families and corporations … [while] taking SNAP and Medicaid away from all of us? Will we let them get away with playing political chess with our lives? No.’”

West Virginia Watch: Opinion: The ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ Threatens the Work Done on the Overdose Crisis in West Virginia.

  • “Patients don’t need more hurdles and barriers to care, especially the many who are already in poor health, disabled, dealing with substance use disorders, or living in challenging circumstances. They have enough to juggle without the risk of losing their health care hanging over their heads every single month.”

Charleston Gazette-Mail: Opinion: Unnecessary Deaths Easily Preventable.

  • “Recently, Iowa Republican Sen. Joni Ernst stirred up controversy by dismissing concerns like these, saying ‘we are all going to die.’ Maybe so. But working-class people don’t have to die prematurely in the tens of thousands every year just to enrich the wealthiest. This is totally preventable.”
ashoup
In News

Rep. Nanette Barragán, Local Health Care Advocates to Join Protect Our Care California As Republicans Vote to Decimate Rural Health Care, Force 28 California Hospitals to Close

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR FRIDAY, JUNE 20 at 10:00 AM***

GOP Proposed Cuts to Medicaid Put Coverage for Millions of Californians on the Chopping Block and Put 28 California Hospitals at Risk of Closure 

BAKERSFIELD, CALIFORNIA — On Friday, June 20th at 10:00 AM PT, Rep. Nanette Barragán and local health care advocates will join Protect Our Care California during Save Our Hospitals Week to discuss the ongoing GOP assault on Medicaid and its impact on California hospitals. Rep. David Valadao and his fellow Republicans in the House recently passed Trump’s big, ugly bill that slashes funding for Americans’ health care in order to hand out tax breaks to billionaires and big corporations. If Republicans get their way and this bill is signed into law, the consequences would be catastrophic, threatening millions of Californians access to coverage and putting 338 rural hospitals, including 28 in California, at risk of closure. If rural hospitals are forced to close, seniors, children, people with disabilities, cancer patients, and more, across California will lose access to necessary care.

Accessing local hospitals can make the difference between life and death, and save Californians Californians hours of travel to access critical care. Californians across the political spectrum want more access to health care, not less, but despite widespread opposition in the Central Valley and across California, Republicans are charging forward with their reckless spending bill. This will cut over $1 trillion from Medicaid and the ACA, throwing 16 million Americans off their coverage, forcing rural hospitals to close, and hiking premiums for over 24 million Americans. All to put more money in the pockets of the rich. Speakers will highlight the devastating impact of GOP cuts to Medicaid and reduced access to health care.

WHO:
U.S. Rep. Nanette Barragán
Reyna Olaguez, CEO of Building Healthy Communities Kern
Kiran Savage-Sangwan, Executive Director of California Pan-Ethnic Health
Nataly Santamaria, Senior Manager for the Central Valley Promotora Network
Melissa Cedillo, Health Access California

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference

WHEN: Friday, June 20th, at 10:00 AM PT

WHERE: Register to join the Zoom event (Registration required)

ashoup
In News

“Cruelty Is The Point”: Gov. Green, GA State Rep., and Arkansas Legal Aid Attorney Join Protect Our Care Calling Out Work Requirements As a GOP Ploy To Kick Millions Off Their Health Care

Watch the Full Event Here.

Washington, D.C. — Today, Governor Josh Green, M.D. (D-HI), Georgia State Representative Inga Willis and Kevin De Liban, a lawyer who successfully sued to stop Arkansas’ Medicaid work requirements program, joined Protect Our Care to discuss how the Republican scheme to impose work requirements will rip away health care from people who need it the most. Both Rep. Willis and De Liban know firsthand how ineffective and wasteful work requirements are through the failures of their respective state programs after thousands of people wrongfully lost their coverage.

Republicans in Congress are charging ahead with their spending bill to throw 16 million Americans off their health care in order to fund tax breaks for billionaires and big corporations. Earlier this week, Senate Republicans unveiled their version of the GOP tax bill, exposing their scheme to cut more than $1 trillion from American health care. As part of this bill, Republicans want to impose new, onerous Medicaid work reporting requirements. Research and states like Georgia and Arkansas show that work reporting requirements are nothing more than bureaucratic red tape designed to throw people off their health care.

“The Republican bill will destroy and devastate the rural health care system across our country,” said Governor Josh Green, M.D. (D-HI). “If the hospital where I worked as the lone physician closed, my patients would have to drive 75 miles to get care elsewhere. Individuals would have to make the decision, do I drive to get care for their loved one who’s having a heart attack or wait for an ambulance to get to me and then to a town an hour away? Large, vast areas of America are going to have a more difficult time finding health care. It is utter madness to be taking health care away from our most vulnerable communities to make sure that millionaires get even richer.”

“My grandmother used to call it snake oil that was peddled by a charlatan,” said Georgia State Representative Inga Willis (D-55th District). “It appears to be such a great idea to promote a greater work ethic of people, but actually what you’re doing is making a process more cumbersome for the most vulnerable of our citizens, which leads me to believe that the cruelty is the point.”

“These aren’t hiccups – these are mass coverage losses done in a totally foreseeable, intended way,” said Attorney Kevin De Liban. “In only five months, 18,164 Arkansans lost coverage due to these penalties, and there were thousands more who lost coverage because of paperwork burdens that are associated with these penalties. Work requirements are not a serious proposal – it’s laughable and a joke. And the cost of that laughter is going to be millions and millions of low-income Americans without health care.”

“Work requirements are nothing but a cruel excuse to rip away lifesaving care from millions of people,” said Protect Our Care Chair Leslie Dach. “All it does is bury people under mountains of paperwork and red tape until they lose their coverage and no one will be spared. Not only will older adults, people with disabilities, children, and working families lose coverage, but seniors will be thrown out of nursing homes, rural hospitals will shutter, and people with serious medical conditions like cancer will be forced to stop treatment. Republicans know what they are doing. This isn’t about requiring work, this is about weakening Medicaid.”

ashoup
In News

“This Affects All of Us”: Rep. Dingell, Former CMS Administrator Sound Alarm on GOP Plan to Raise Costs, Slash Care and Close Hospitals

Watch the Full Event Here.

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.”

ashoup
In News

PRESS CALL: As Senate Charges Ahead With GOP Tax Scam, Gov. Green, GA State Rep., Arkansas Legal Aid Attorney Join Protect Our Care to Explain How Work Requirements Are Designed To Kick Millions Off Their Health Care

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR WEDNESDAY JUNE 18TH AT 4 PM ET***

Register for the Event Here.

Washington, D.C. — On Wednesday, June 18, 2025, at 4 pm ET, Governor Josh Green, M.D. (D-HI), will join Protect Our Care to discuss how the GOP scheme to impose work requirements will rip away health care from people who need it the most. Joining Protect Our Care and Gov. Green on the call are Georgia State Representative Inga Willis and Kevin De Liban, a lawyer who successfully sued to stop Arkansas’ Medicaid work requirements program after thousands of people wrongfully lost their coverage. Both Rep. Willis and De Liban know firsthand how ineffective and wasteful work requirements are through the failures of their respective state programs.

Senate Republicans are charging ahead with their devastating tax scam that will kick millions off their health care in order to fund tax breaks for billionaires and big corporations. This week, Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee released bill text solidifying more than  $1 trillion cuts from American health care, largely by imposing new, onerous Medicaid work reporting requirements on hard-working Americans. If Republicans get their way, 16 million Americans will lose life-saving coverage. Research shows that work reporting requirements are nothing more than bureaucratic red tape designed to throw people off their health care. As a result, millions of sick children, people with disabilities, and seniors are at risk of losing lifesaving coverage. 

PRESS CALL:

WHO:
Governor Josh Green, M.D. (D-HI)
Georgia State Representative Inga Willis (D-55th District)
Kevin De Liban, long-time legal aid attorney in Arkansas and founder of TechTonic Justice
Leslie Dach, Chair of Protect Our Care

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference

WHERE: Register for the Event Here.

WHEN: Wednesday, June 18, 2025, at 4 pm ET

ashoup
In Roundup, News

CRASH AND BURN: Opposition to Trump’s Big Ugly Bill Is Soaring the More People Learn About It

Americans Overwhelmingly Reject Trump’s Tax Scam As Senate Republicans Push Even Deeper Health Care Cuts

Yesterday, Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee released the full text of their version of Trump’s tax scam, making the largest cuts to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act in history even larger to pay for tax breaks for billionaires and big corporations. An estimated 16 million Americans would lose life-saving coverage under the House version, including seniors, children, veterans, people with disabilities, workers who don’t get insurance through their jobs, and people who take care of their children or elderly parents – but Senate Republicans are pushing deeper cuts, even as polling shows that Americans overwhelmingly disapprove of Republicans’ massive health care cuts. Here’s the latest polling: 

KFF: Poll: Public Views “Big Beautiful Bill” Unfavorably by Nearly a 2-1 Margin.

  • Nearly two-thirds (64%) of the public holds unfavorable views of the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ passed last month by the House, nearly twice the share who view the bill favorably (35%), a new KFF Health Tracking Poll finds… When people hear facts and arguments about the bill’s impact on health care, support shrinks and opposition grows, including among MAGA supporters. For example, after being told that the bill would decrease funding for local hospitals, the share with favorable views falls to 21% and unfavorable views rise to 79%. Similarly, after being told that the bill would increase the number of people without health insurance by about 10 million, support falls to 25% and opposition rises to 74%. Among MAGA supporters, support drops by more than 20 percentage points after hearing each of the two arguments, resulting in less than half in the group viewing the law favorably.”
  • “As Congress debates significant reductions in federal spending on Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the poll finds the public views the two programs more favorably than ever before. Regarding Medicaid, 83% of the public now views the Medicaid program favorably, including large majorities of Democrats (93%), independents (83%), and Republicans (74%). That’s up from 77% in January, with the biggest jump occurring among Republicans. Unfavorable views of the program now stand at 17%, down from 23% in January. Similarly, two-thirds (66%) of the public now have favorable views of the ACA, the highest level of support recorded in KFF polls since the law’s enactment in 2010. Favorable views of the ACA have been on the rise since 2017 during an unsuccessful attempt by Congressional Republicans to repeal the law during President Trump’s first term.”

Navigator: Majorities Oppose Republicans in Congress’ Proposed Budget Plan.

  • “A majority of Americans (51 percent) now oppose the Republican budget plan following its passage in the House. Opposition outweighs support by 15 points, with just 36 percent supporting the GOP budget bill. Opposition to the bill has increased six points since May and has grown the most among independents.”
  • “Learning that additional tax cuts would benefit those who are already rich leads 55 percent of independents and a 43 percent plurality of non-MAGA Republicans to oppose the budget plan… Giving new tax breaks to the rich and big corporations is a dealbreaker for Americans across partisanship: 87 percent of Democrats, 73 percent of independents, and 51 percent of Republicans say they could not support an elected official who voted to give new tax breaks to the wealthy.”

Washington Post: GOP budget bill faces nearly 2-to-1 opposition with many unaware: Poll.

  • “…42 percent of Americans oppose the budget bill “changing tax, spending and Medicaid policies” that narrowly passed in May by the Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives, compared with 23 percent of Americans who support the bill…”
  • “…44 percent say it’s unacceptable for about 8 million people to lose health insurance as a result of these [work] requirements as well as more frequent eligibility verification and state restrictions, while 32 percent say this is acceptable. When new requirements are not specified, the poll finds 63 percent saying it’s unacceptable for 8 million people to lose Medicaid health insurance.”

AP-NORC: Few want spending reductions on federal benefit programs.

  • “A majority of adults think the federal government is already under-spending on key safety net programs including Medicare and Social Security. They also feel the country is not investing enough in education. Roughly half the public feel spending is too low for Medicaid and food and nutrition programs like SNAP.”
  • “More Republicans say the government is spending too little on Social Security and Medicare than say it’s spending too much.”

HEADLINES

USA Today: Bad news for Trump’s tax bill: Poll finds majority of Americans oppose it.

  • “…64 percent of Americans have an unfavorable view of the proposed bill, which passed the House in May and is currently being tweaked in the Senate… Like the KFF poll, the Post found support and opposition for the bill fell along party lines: 49% of Republicans supported the bill, while just 17% of independents and 6% of Democrats did.”

KFF Health News: ‘MAGA’ Backers Like Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ — Until They Learn of Health Consequences.

  • “The poll finds two-thirds of the public — including the vast majority of Republicans (88%) and MAGA supporters (93%) and half (51%) of Democrats — initially support requiring nearly all adults on Medicaid to prove they are working or looking for work, in school, or doing community service, with exceptions such as for caregivers and people with disabilities. However, attitudes toward this provision shifted dramatically when respondents were presented with more information. For example, when told most adults with Medicaid are already working or unable to work, and that those individuals could lose coverage due to the challenge of documenting it, about half of supporters changed their view, resulting in nearly two-thirds of adults opposing Medicaid work requirements and about a third supporting them.”

NBC News: Poll: Americans disapprove of Trump’s performance as Republicans manage splits over spending plans.

  • “A slight majority of Americans (51%) said maintaining current spending levels on programs like Medicaid is the most important matter as Congress considers Trump-backed budget legislation this year… Democrats surveyed in the poll overwhelmingly said their priority is maintaining current spending levels on programs like Medicaid (79%), as do a slight majority of independents (53%).”

ABC News: AP-NORC poll: Many say Medicaid, food stamps underfunded amid GOP cuts push.

  • “Americans broadly support increasing or maintaining existing levels of funding for popular safety net programs, including Social Security and Medicare, according to the poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research… About half of U.S. adults say “too little” funding goes to Medicaid, which is a government health care coverage program for low-income people and people with certain disabilities… About 6 in 10 Americans say there is not enough government money going toward Social Security, Medicare or education broadly.”

NPR: Medicaid keeps getting more popular as Republicans aim to cut it by $800 billion.

  • “Three in 4 Republicans now say they view Medicaid favorably. That popularity boost comes as many more people are hearing about Republican cuts to Medicaid in the news… That budget bill is much less popular than Medicaid, the KFF poll found. Overall, 2 in 3 Americans have unfavorable views of the bill. Those who support President Trump do like the bill, but they also like Medicaid, Kirzinger says.”
  • “‘If you tell people that it would decrease funding for local hospitals, unfavorability increases to nearly 8 in 10. If you tell people it would increase the uninsured [population] by about 10 million people, unfavorability increases to 3 in 4.’ Republican lawmakers have downplayed the projected financial impact to rural hospitals and the number of people who could become uninsured, aiming to frame the proposed changes as targeting those who don’t deserve coverage.”
ashoup
In News

HEADLINES: Senate Charges Ahead With Even Deeper Medicaid Cuts to Fund Tax Breaks for the Wealthy 

Thursday, April 24 – SEIU Disability Week of Action Medicaid Rally in David Valadao’s District

Yesterday, the Senate Finance Committee released its bill text for the Republican tax scam, which includes even steeper cuts to Medicaid to finance tax cuts for the wealthy. The GOP’s proposed plan will kick more than 16 million Americans off their health care. The Senate bill is far worse than the House-passed bill. It makes the work requirements even more onerous by including parents of teenagers and by making even deeper cuts to hospitals. No one will be spared under the GOP’s scheme to make the largest cuts to Medicaid in history. Not only will older adults, people with disabilities, children, and working families lose coverage, but seniors will be thrown out of nursing homes, rural hospitals will shutter, and people with serious medical conditions like cancer will be forced to stop treatment. The Republican bill remains widely unpopular, while support for Medicaid continues to grow.

The New York Times: Senate Bill Would Make Deep Cuts to Medicaid, Setting Up Fight With House

  • “While the House measure would add a new work requirement to Medicaid for childless adults, the Senate proposal would expand its application to the parents of older children. It also would crack down even harder than the House bill on strategies that many states have developed to tax medical providers and pay them higher prices for Medicaid services.”

The Washington Post: Senate Overhauls Trump’s Tax Bill, Setting Up Brawl With The House

  • “The Senate Finance Committee released its proposals Monday afternoon, and they are some of the most controversial in the mammoth legislation. The panel is responsible for codifying trillions of dollars in tax cuts and pays for them largely by slashing Medicaid, the federal health insurance program for low-income individuals.”

STAT: Medicaid Cuts Could Result In More Than 16,000 Preventable Deaths Annually

  • “Republican lawmakers in Congress are pushing for cuts to the taxpayer-funded health insurance program, used by more than 70 million low-income Americans, as a way to help offset the cost of extending, and adding, to Trump’s 2017 tax cuts — primarily benefitting wealthy Americans — that are expiring in 2025. The Senate will consider the proposals in the House bill and are expected to suggest changes soon.”

Fox News: ‘It’s Wrong’: Hawley Warns Senate GOP Not To Boot Americans From Medicaid In Trump Megabill

  • “‘These are not people who are sitting around, these are people who are working,’ he said. ‘They’re on Medicaid because they cannot afford private health insurance, and they don’t get it on the job. And I just think it’s wrong to go to those people and say, “Well, you know, we know you’re doing the best, we know that you’re working hard, but we’re going to take away your healthcare access,” he continued.’”

Common Dreams: Senate GOP Dumps Gasoline on ‘Five-Alarm Fire’ by Proposing Even Deeper Medicaid Cuts

  • “Senate Republicans on Monday proposed cutting Medicaid even more aggressively than their House colleagues to help offset the cost of trillions of dollars in tax breaks that would disproportionately benefit the wealthiest Americans.”
  • “Leslie Dach, chair of the advocacy group Protect Our Care, said in a statement that ‘this bill was already a five-alarm fire for American healthcare, and Senate Republicans have just poured gasoline on it.’”

Huffpost: Senate Republicans Unveil Their Version Of Trump’s Tax And Medicaid Cuts

  • “House and Senate Republicans agree on the big picture: an extension of the temporary tax cuts Republicans enacted during Trump’s first term in 2017. Unless Congress takes action, those cuts will expire at the end of the year. The cost of those tax cuts would be partly offset by cuts to Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.”
ashoup
In News

NEW: Report and Ads Slam Republicans’ Big, Ugly Bill For Threatening Hundreds of Hospital Cuts and Closures

Trump and Republicans’ So-Called ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ Could Cause 338 Rural Hospitals to Shut Down, Taking Care From Small Towns and Rural Communities While Cutting Jobs and Hurting Economies

View the New Ad and Report.

Washington, D.C. – Protect Our Care released a new report and launched a new digital ad raising the alarm on the devastating impact Trump’s Big, Ugly Bill could have on hospitals in small towns and rural communities across the country. This Republican bill could cause 338 hospitals to close their doors or scale back services. People across the country, including seniors, people with disabilities, expectant mothers, and cancer patients, would have to travel further to get care and experience lengthier wait times in emergency rooms. Hospital employees would lose their jobs and local economies would suffer. The ad and report come as House Democrats hold Save Our Hospitals Week and Republicans continue to advance their Big, Ugly Bill through the Senate. 

This is part of Protect Our Care’s 10-million-dollar “Hands Off Medicaid” campaign and follows ads holding key House and Senate Republicans’ feet to the fire as they continue to push this devastating bill forward. It would make the largest cuts to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act in history, ripping health care coverage away from 16 million Americans, in order to fund massive tax breaks for the wealthiest individuals and corporations. 

“This bill is nothing short of an attack on the American people,” said Protect Our Care President Brad Woodhouse. “Not only would it rip health care away from millions, it would gut hospitals and vital services, leaving rural communities to suffer all to fund tax breaks to the ultra-wealthy. But Republicans are hell bent on forcing these draconian health care cuts forward anyway. No one should lose access to life-saving care and coverage just so the wealthiest people and corporations can pay less in taxes.”

Sample Ad Script: 

Narrator: When you’re in trouble, you want a hospital. A place that’s close, that’s ready, that’s there when you need it. 

But Donald Trump’s so-called ‘big beautiful bill’ would enact the largest cut to Medicaid in history, slashing over $400 billion from our hospitals and putting care for everyone at risk. 

The ambulance may come, but it won’t matter if they have nowhere to take you. Longer drives, fewer doctors, more lives in danger. 

Tell Republicans: “Don’t let Trump gut our hospitals to pay for tax cuts for the rich.”

ashoup
In Statement, News

Senate Finance Republicans Unveil Bill Text, Doubling Down on Devastating Health Care Cuts to Fund Billionaire Tax Breaks

Washington, D.C. – Today, Republicans on the Senate Committee on Finance released the full text of their version of Trump’s tax scam. Senate Republicans have upped the ante and made the largest cuts to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act in history even larger, all so Trump and the GOP can give even more tax breaks to billionaires and big corporations. As a result, 16 million Americans will lose life-saving coverage, including seniors, children, veterans, people with disabilities, workers who don’t get insurance through their jobs, and people who take care of their children or elderly parents. This level of estimated coverage loss hasn’t been seen since the 2017 ACA repeal effort.

In response, Protect Our Care Chair Leslie Dach issued a statement: 

“This bill was already a five-alarm fire for American health care and Senate Republicans have just poured gasoline on it. Contrary to what they’ve repeatedly promised, Republicans are torching Medicaid, ripping apart the Affordable Care Act, and leaving 16 million people without the critical care they need, all so Trump and the GOP can funnel more money to their billionaire and corporate friends. Seniors will be thrown out of nursing homes, people fighting cancer will be cut off from treatment, and rural hospitals will shutter. Senate Republicans have made this cruel, heartless bill even worse as they continue on their endless pursuit to destroy our health care system. Every single Republican Senator who backs this big, ugly bill will own the devastation it causes and be held accountable for choosing billionaires and big corporations over everyday Americans.”

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