Target: Xavier Becerra, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services
Goal: Advocate for slow-down of Medicaid enrollment cuts that could leave millions behind.
The most vulnerable Americans already face challenges in securing healthcare because of real barriers like the Medicaid Gap and the refusal of many states to expand Medicaid coverage. In the new year, these obstacles will likely become even greater. By mid-year, up to 15 million people—fully 20 percent of Medicaid recipients—could be dropped from coverage.
Under a COVID-19 public health emergency declaration, states were barred from ending an individual’s Medicaid coverage. This provision is set to expire in April, however, meaning state governments can once again kick people from their primary healthcare coverage source. The poorest populations will suffer most, as they lose the ability to pay for critical services.
Another main concern is the very real possibility that Medicaid-eligible individuals will also be booted from the program because of problems in communication or filing necessary paperwork. People in rural areas without ready access to digital updates may not even receive timely notification of their change in status. Advocates are urging, at the very least, an expansion of the time frame for enacting these changes so that no American falls through the cracks.
Sign the petition below to support a course-correction in the interest of public health.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Secretary Becerra,
Medicaid could soon be losing one-fifth of its enrollees, leaving millions of Americans without a crucial health lifeline. The sunsetting of COVID-19 Medicaid cut prohibitions would slash access for the most vulnerable populations. Moreover, it could push countless individuals still eligible for the coverage out of the program because of red tape.
The federal government has recommended states take a full year to assess every case in full so that proper and potentially life-saving decisions can be made. But if even one state chooses to begin these troubling expulsions in a few short months, tens of thousands of Americans will suffer. Please reassess this timeline and make concrete adjustments at a time when every moment counts.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo Credit: Hibr
All American citizens have a right to health care. Not everyone is able to be in politics and have dark money handed to them under the table to do the bidding of their supporters. Being poor is not a sin yet having money is so convenient. Stopping Medicaid will harm many and can possibly be corrected by making more of an effort to look at the various cases prior to judging them to be of no further use to the government. Haste makes waste. All citizens deserve health care, period!