Jake Auchincloss Highlights Constituents Relying On Medicaid To Warn Against GOP Reconciliation

Forbes Breaking News

At the House Energy Committee markup hearing for the GOP budget reconciliation bill, Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-MA) slammed Medicaid cuts.

Transcript

00:00Mr. Chairman I seek to be recognized. The gentleman from Massachusetts is

00:06recognized for his opening statement. Thank you Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman when

00:1013.7 million Americans lose access to health care, 13.7 million Americans don't

00:16stop getting sick. What happens instead is losing access to primary and

00:22preventative care, they actually require more health care and they visit the

00:27emergency room and they get care that takes longer and is less comprehensive.

00:32And here's what that means for everyday Americans, middle class and working class,

00:37including those who get access to health insurance through their employer.

00:40It means that their health insurance premiums are going to go up because when

00:44hospitals provide care to people through the emergency rooms, they have to cross

00:48subsidize that by raising the cost that they charge to commercial payers. So it

00:53won't just be the 13.7 million Americans who were kicked off health coverage, who

00:57have to pay more out of pocket to get health care. It's going to be all

01:00Americans who have health insurance who will pay more in health insurance

01:04premiums. This after Donald Trump and Republicans promised that they were

01:07going to come in and lower prices. Down the road, the middle class and the

01:12working class are going to be paying more in taxes and through inflation

01:15because of the seven trillion dollars in debt that Republicans are adding with

01:20this tax cut giveaway to the wealthiest Americans. And those Americans who do end

01:27up needing Medicaid are now going to find that it cannot meet their needs. My

01:33constituent Ethan Wang was critically injured while swimming in the ocean when

01:37he was studying abroad in March 2019. The spinal cord injury left him paralyzed,

01:41needing immediate life-saving surgeries abroad, followed by a medical

01:44evacuation back to his home in Massachusetts. Then, inexplicably, Ethan's dad,

01:52Willis, suffered a major stroke just two years later. He also now has

01:55disabilities but continues to work as best he can. I'm not sure if he meets the

01:59Republicans' definition of work, but he is working as best as he can. All of this

02:03was possible because of Ethan and Willis' determination and support from the

02:07personal care attendant program operated through the Massachusetts Medicaid

02:10program known as MassHealth. When these cuts roll down onto the states, though, the

02:15PCA, as well as other flexible programming, will be under threat. The PCA, which allows

02:21people with disabilities to stay in their homes, they do not have to stay in

02:23expensive institutions, may come on to the chopping block. Ethan's and Willis' family

02:30never thought that they would depend on MassHealth, nor did they seek to, nor did

02:34they want or ask for a handout. They had an accident, they got sick, and they needed

02:41access to health care. The Wang family is a dual professional household in Newton with

02:46three healthy boys. Nobody knows when they will need to rely on Medicaid, but when they

02:51do, they need it to be strong and sound so that it can be a reliable system for

02:54families when they need it most. Ethan's mom says it best, quote, we all live on the

03:00razor's edge of health. And when you need assistance from the state, you see the

03:03world in our social safety net through fresh eyes. I urge my colleagues on both

03:08sides of the aisle to protect Medicaid and the life-saving programs that it

03:12supports. I yield back. The gentleman yields. The gentleman from Louisiana is

03:16recognized for his opening statement. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. We've heard so much

03:20today.

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