Republican-proposed legislation in the House will rip away access to health and long-term care for millions of older adults and people with disabilities. The legislation, if enacted, would starve Medicaid, put nursing home residents at risk, attack Medicare cost-sharing programs that help millions afford health care coverage, and create a brick wall for people age 19 to 64 through onerous work requirements and cost sharing—leaving fewer paths for coverage through either Medicaid or the Affordable Care Act Marketplace.
This legislation that the U.S. House of Representatives proposes would endanger health care for older adults and others across the country simply to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations.
“We know this legislation is not strengthening the program for older adults or anyone. It’s actually taking us backwards by shrinking the program and adding more red tape,” said Kevin Prindiville, Executive Director at Justice in Aging. “Making it harder for older adults, people with disabilities, and other low-income people who depend on Medicaid to get and keep coverage is not a side effect of these bad policies. It’s the point. As a result, nearly 14 million people will have their health insurance ripped away and even more older adults with Medicare will be under-insured and unable to meet their basic needs. We urge Congress to reject this dangerous and inhumane bill.”
Read our full analysis on the health legislation here. This information will be updated as we learn more.
