Dear Friends:
This week, Republicans in Congress are returning to Washington to continue working on their new budget plan that puts Medicaid—called Healthy Connections here in South Carolina—at serious risk.
This plan isn’t just numbers on a page. It would take health care away from millions of people across the country—potentially including working families, children, new moms, older adults, and people with disabilities.
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) confirms what many of us fear: for the Republicans’ budget plan to work, Congress would have to make deep cuts to Medicaid.
Over the next 10 years, House Republicans’ budget would cut $880 billion from the part of the budget that includes Medicaid. And according to the CBO, the only way to do that is by cutting Medicaid significantly.
Let me be crystal clear about what this means for South Carolinians:
- About 43% of all children in our state get health care through Healthy Connections.
- 46% of moms who give birth—and their babies—are covered by it.
- One in three working-age adults with disabilities depends on it.
In our district alone, nearly 25% of people receive Medicaid, and nearly half of them are kids. If these cuts happen, South Carolina may have to make some very hard choices, like taking away coverage from:
- Children with disabilities
- Moms who recently had a baby
- Seniors and disabled adults who need help with long-term care
- People with cancer who don’t have other insurance
This is not speculation; it’s the math, and behind the math are real people.
At the same time, Republicans are working to keep Donald Trump’s tax cuts in place and make them permanent—a move that will mostly benefit the wealthy at a cost of $5.5 trillion.
To be clear, that means less money for health care and more tax breaks for the rich.
This is simply wrong. It goes against what working people in this country need and deserve. I’ll keep fighting for a better alternative—one that protects Medicaid, strengthens working families, and invests in our future.
Sincerely,
Jim