Attention: Health-Care Advocates!

An important message from our friends at Community Catalyst:

Dear Partners:

Thanks to the hard work of advocates across the country, Medicaid and Medicare were spared – at least in the short term – in the vote to raise the debt ceiling. Check out our brief analysis at Health Policy Hub.

Your collective voices calling to protect Medicaid, the cornerstone of the Affordable Care Act, were heard, and we commend your efforts to protect the health and well-being of millions of seniors, people living with disabilities and children.

A bipartisan joint committee will soon begin work to find at least $1.2 trillion in budget cuts, and we know that Medicaid and Medicare will be back on the table. Our fight is not over, and our messages remain the same:

• We must protect long-term care for millions of seniors, assistance that helps people with disabilities live independently, and health coverage that ensures children can see a doctor when they get sick.
• Reducing the deficit is important, but we need to take a balanced approach that doesn’t put the burden on the people who can least bear it.
• Our leaders should only support proposals to reduce the deficit that reflect our priorities and ensure seniors, people living with disabilities and children get the care and support they need to be active members of our community. 
• Is it right for kids, seniors, and people living with disabilities to bear the brunt of deficit reduction while asking nothing of big corporations and millionaires?

Within the next two weeks, the joint committee members will be appointed and they will need to hear directly from their constituents and Congressional colleagues that “Medicaid Matters.” Everyone will have an important role to play, and we will provide the tools and resources needed to make your voices heard.

Thank you for your continued advocacy,

The Community Catalyst Implementation Team