WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined Senators Bob Casey (D-PA), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) at a rally yesterday with disability rights advocates against the reckless $1.4 trillion in cuts to Medicaid that President Trump has proposed in his healthcare repeal bill and budget blueprint. Senator Duckworth warned that the cuts would hurt students across the country who benefit from Medicaid-funded counselors and school nurses and jeopardize the healthcare coverage of both the millions of Veterans who rely on Medicaid and the two-thirds of nursing home residents whose bills are paid by Medicaid. Video of Duckworth’s remarks are available upon request.
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“This President’s proposed cuts to Medicaid would fall hardest on the people who need it most and that’s unacceptable,” Duckworth said. “It is not only a broken promise to our seniors and those with disabilities who depend on Medicaid to live with dignity and participate as equal members of our society, but also to our Veterans, who deserve better than having their critical health coverage stripped away from them.”
Nearly 2 million Veterans across the United States, including 60,000 in Illinois, rely on Medicaid for their health coverage. If Trumpcare becomes law, 340,000 of those Veterans would lose their healthcare coverage. Trumpcare would also raise taxes on as many as 7 million Veterans by thousands of dollars by prohibiting any Veteran who is eligible for VA health care from receiving tax credits to help them afford insurance in the private market, regardless of whether or not they are enrolled or able to access it. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget office has estimated that more than 7 million Veterans are eligible for care at VA but not enrolled. Many instead depend on private health insurance with the help of tax credits and could be forced to pay significantly more money in order to afford their healthcare should Trumpcare become law.
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