We grew up on Medicaid and SNAP. We know firsthand how challenging it can be for Black people to lead long, healthy lives without access to quality care. Our families feel the disproportionate impacts. We’ve seen loved ones die because of misdiagnoses–or no diagnoses at all. We’ve had to be our own advocates and fight for care to get the right treatment or tests. Sadly, our long fight for adequate care continues. What was first a fight to expand Medicaid has become one to defend it altogether and we cannot afford to stop fighting now.
The so-called “Big Beautiful Bill” now before the Senate is a mashup of all of the harmful legislation that the GOP has tried to pass for decades that has ultimately been repackaged into one mega bill that may be beautiful for billionaires but will prove to be a devastating blow for the majority of Americans, especially for Black and brown folks who are struggling to put food in the fridge and in rural areas facing hospital and clinic closures.
Across the country, Medicaid provides health coverage to approximately 83 million people — that’s about one in five Americans. This bill would cut federal funding for Medicaid by $800 billion, according to estimates from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO), which could result in nearly 11 million people losing their insurance almost immediately. By 2034, an estimated 16 million people could be uninsured if the bill passes and the enhanced tax credits under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) are allowed to expire.
Ultimately, our communities will bear the greatest hardships and make up 20% of Medicaid enrollees. In the last 15 years, Medicaid has helped to close the gap of uninsured Black people from over 20% to below 10% – 13 million Black folks, seniors, veterans, people with disabilities, and children rely on Medicaid. That number increases to 42 million if we include people of color, specifically brown and Latino individuals.
To date, 10 states have not yet expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. But with this bill, states that have expanded it would be forced to navigate budget deficits, and a handful even have trigger laws that roll back coverage if federal funding decreases.
As organizers who work to uplift predominantly Black communities, we know firsthand the real impact of this legislation and how deeply our communities will be harmed. Medicaid is the difference between a child receiving a routine treatment or developing a chronic illness; a mother obtaining a life-saving mammogram or succumbing to stage 4 cancer because she lacked preventive care.
Most of this country’s Black population lives in the South, and many of us reside in rural areas. Hospitals in these regions, many of which are heavily dependent on Medicaid reimbursements, could face closure, joining the 146 rural hospitals that have already shut down or stopped providing inpatient services between 2005 and 2023.
There is a face behind every number, and we’ve heard real stories through our ‘Sick & Tired’ campaign. Folks like Neidra from Tupelo, MS, a self-employed single mother with three children, who struggled to maintain coverage for her family due to costs. Or Brian from Tallahassee, FL, who was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and was unable to afford his medication for two years because of high costs. Both Niedra and Brian, along with many others we spoke with, fall into the gap between earning too much to qualify for Medicaid and not making enough to afford healthcare, as well as their other living expenses.
If this bill passes, there will be millions more Niedras and Brians. Republicans are moving recklessly fast and want to vote on the bill before July 4th. This window is critical for demanding that our senators protect Medicaid, and by extension, our lives. We must engage our local elected officials, who will be tasked with the difficult decisions for communities as the impacts trickle down.
July will mark the 60th anniversary of Medicaid. It’d be a painful irony to see the undoing of this transformative healthcare policy six decades after its inception. Health should be above political games, but it’s ultimately up to us to advocate for our care. Now is the time to take to the streets, hit the phone lines and speak out – and to remember who stood with and for us when we head to the ballot box.
Fenika Miller is the National Field Co-Director for Black Voters Matter and Jennifer Wells is the Director of Economic Justice at Community Change.