Washington, D.C. – Today, reporting from KATV revealed that the Trump administration has rejected Arkansas’ request to renew the state’s Medicaid expansion program, which would jeopardize the coverage that over 200,000 Arkansans rely on. Before Medicaid expansion, Arkansas had one of the highest uninsured rates in the nation. In just three years of implementation, Arkansas’s uninsured rate has fallen by roughly half, from 22 percent to 10 percent.
In what could be the first of many rejections of Medicaid waiver renewals from the Trump administration, this news isn’t just disastrous for Arkansas. It puts services and coverage for millions at the mercy of an administration that has launched a war on working families’ health care. After Trump and Republicans in Congress slashed over $1 trillion from Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to fund tax breaks for billionaires and big corporations, millions of Americans are struggling to afford their coverage. Rejecting Medicaid expansion will only make it harder for people to access the care they need and deserve.
In response, Protect Our Care Director of Policy Programs Vaishu Jawahar released the following statement:
“Last summer, when Trump and Republicans in Congress passed the largest health care cuts in American history, they did it for a single reason: to kick as many people off their coverage as possible to bankroll tax breaks for billionaires and big corporations. Ever since, working families have been crushed by skyrocketing health care costs, with a majority struggling to stay covered. At a time when families are cutting back on essentials to hang on to their health care, the Trump administration is choosing to tear away a vital lifeline that allows people to access the care they need. This November, voters will not forget who put their health care on the chopping block, and they will demand that their voices be heard.”