Washington, D.C. – In the latest move of their sabotage agenda, the Trump administration is deliberately creating a trap to throw as many Americans off their health care as they can to finance the tax breaks they gave to billionaires and big corporations. The guidance creates a labyrinth of paperwork, reporting mandates, and rigid eligibility rules designed to ensure people lose health care, even when they should qualify to keep it.
Last summer, Trump and Republicans cut $1 trillion from Medicaid to fund tax breaks for billionaires and big corporations. Now, 15 million people are at risk of losing their health care, with work requirements driving the biggest coverage losses. These cuts are expected to fall especially hard on people with disabilities and serious health conditions who will be forced to navigate complicated reporting systems and repeated eligibility checks just to keep their care. The Trump administration is deliberately creating hurdles that they know people will struggle with in order to bankroll the massive tax breaks they handed out to the ultra-wealthy.
As states brace for implementation, leaders all across the country are scrambling, trying to protect their communities from the fallout of this disastrous policy. Rather than addressing the corporate greed that is making health care so expensive, the Trump administration has chosen to punish American families who are struggling to afford their health care.
In response, Protect Our Care President Brad Woodhouse released the following statement:
“Instead of lowering costs or making care more accessible, Republicans are weaponizing government bureaucracy against the American people. They are betting that if they make the process confusing and exhausting enough, millions of people will fall through the cracks and lose the care they depend on to survive. Hospitals will suffer, providers will be pushed further to the brink, and families across the country will pay the price while Republicans once again put wealthy donors and corporate greed ahead of the health and well-being of everyday Americans.”
Learn More About How This Red Tape Will Affect Americans Across the Nation:
In Waterville, Maine, Kelli Austin works multiple jobs but is still at risk of losing her Medicaid coverage under new GOP red tape. Every day, Kelli battles debilitating physical and mental health conditions, including arthritis, fibromyalgia, and bipolar disorder. Some months she works close to 100 hours, while other months her symptoms become so severe she “can’t get out of bed” or “use the bathroom on [her] own.” Meeting the rigid 80-hour monthly requirement written into law by Republicans may be impossible for Kelli.
“‘Without Medicaid, what would I do? I would be dead,’ Austin said.”
“‘I don’t want to be the person who sits at home and collects a check. I want to contribute to society,’ said Austin.” Despite her illnesses, Austin wants to work, but GOP cuts may rip away the health care she relies on to function. [Lewiston Sun-Journal]
In Little Rock, Arkansas, Andrew Hicks fears he will once again lose coverage and access to the medication he counts on to survive under new GOP work requirements. In 2018, he was balancing graduate school and work as an Uber driver when Arkansas Medicaid work requirements ripped away his health care. After losing his health care and access to medication, his mental health deteriorated so badly that he became suicidal. Arkansas’s work requirements were struck down by a court, but will now make a comeback under Republicans’ big, ugly bill. Today, Hicks is worried the same thing could happen again, and he is stockpiling medication in anticipation. [Axios]
In Boston, Massachusetts, Derek Winbush is suffering from multiple chronic conditions, including HIV, cirrhosis, and kidney disease, and now may lose his health care due to the GOP’s work requirements. His illnesses make it difficult to stand or walk, yet he does not qualify for a disability exemption and will be forced to fill out mountains of paperwork with no guarantee of an exemption under medical frailty. Without Medicaid, Winbush says his health would deteriorate almost immediately.
“‘It’s probably life or death with me,’ he said. ‘It’s that serious.’” [Boston Globe]
In Omaha, Nebraska, Schmeeka Simpson, a mother of three who relies on Medicaid, says she is already working multiple jobs to support her family but still fears she could lose her health coverage under new GOP work requirements. Simpson says she does not even know whether the requirements apply to her or how she is supposed to navigate the new system, highlighting the confusion and bureaucratic hurdles many working families could face.
“‘We’re already doing everything we can to stay afloat,’ said Simpson. ‘So this policy is not addressing laziness, it’s actually adding pressure to people who are already stretched thin.’” [Healthcare Dive] [Photo from NPR]