ROUNDUP: Democratic Governors Warn of Dangerous GOP Medicaid Cuts

ROUNDUP: Democratic Governors Warn of Dangerous GOP Medicaid Cuts 

Last week, Democratic Governors Ned Lamont (CT), Matt Meyer (DE), Josh Green (HI), Michelle Lujan Grisham (NM), and Tina Kotek (OR) joined Protect Our Care for a press conference outlining the stakes of Congressional Republicans’ attacks on Medicaid and Republican-led efforts to rip health care coverage away from millions of Americans.

Led by Hawai’i Governor Josh Green, the country’s only sitting governor who is also a practicing physician, all stressed the importance of keeping Medicaid intact and protecting access to health care for millions of Americans, including children, people with disabilities, veterans, and those in rural communities. The governors also outlined how they work across the aisle to identify and eliminate fraud, bring down costs, and improve the lives of the people in their states.

WATCH:WLAJ – ABC (Lansing, Michigan): Democratic Governors Denounce Proposed Medicaid Cuts

KOLR – CBS (Springfield, Missouri): The Future of Medicaid

WDAF-KC – FOX (Kansas City, Missouri): Democratic Governors Rally Against Proposed Medicaid Cuts 

Read more about Democratic Governors’ calls to protect Medicaid: 

NBC News: Democratic governors warn against potential Medicaid cuts in upcoming budget package

• Hawaii Gov. Josh Green, who is a physician, warned that if Congress passes a bill with significant cuts to Medicaid, “the hospitals, the rural hospitals all across the red part of America especially, will close.”
• “People will die if we break this healthcare system, especially in rural America,” Green told reporters during a press conference organized by Protect Our Care and the Democratic Governors Association.
• New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan-Grisham highlighted the fact that hundreds of rural hospitals across the U.S. have already closed in recent years, but this phenomenon would be accelerated with cuts to Medicaid.
• “The right answer is to invest in a meaningful health care system that protects every American, regardless of age or coverage,” Lujan Grisham said, adding that cuts to Medicaid wouldn’t just mean that individuals lose healthcare coverage, but that entire healthcare facilities would close.

Nexstar: Democratic governors sound alarm over proposed Medicaid cuts

• Democratic governors from across the country are speaking out against proposed Medicaid cuts, warning that millions of Americans could lose access to essential healthcare services.
• Green said the cuts would disproportionately impact vulnerable populations. “Those people tend to be children, people with disabilities, those with very serious illnesses, and individuals living in poverty,” Green said.
• New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham described a dire situation if the proposed cuts are enacted. “Hospitals close, doctors stop providing care, no more independent practices, no more long-term care facilities,” Lujan Grisham said.

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