Velázquez, Health Care Workers, and Patients Sound Alarm on Local Impact of Republican Medicaid Cuts
BROOKLYN, NY- Yesterday, Congresswoman Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) gathered local health care workers, hospital leadership, and Medicaid recipients at Wyckoff Heights Medical Center in Bushwick to speak out against the deep Medicaid cuts included in the Republicans’ Big Ugly Bill, which strips health insurance from 17 million Americans.
The press conference focused on the devastating impact of nearly a trillion dollars in Medicaid cuts on working families in Brooklyn and Queens. Speakers also discussed the harm these cuts would do to safety net hospitals like Wyckoff, which serves a largely working-class and immigrant population that depends on Medicaid for essential care.
“The damage from this law is real, and it’s already underway,” said Congresswoman Velázquez. “Hospitals like Wyckoff are being asked to do more with less while serving the most vulnerable members of our community. We’re not going to stay quiet while families lose care and safety net providers are pushed to the brink.”
In New York State, the bill is projected to cut nearly $13 billion from the health care system and cause 1.5 million New Yorkers to lose their coverage. In New York’s 7th District alone, 45 percent of residents rely on Medicaid for essential care.
Speakers at the event included Wyckoff CEO Vail Gache, front-line health care workers, community health advocates, and Medicaid recipients who shared the threat this bill poses to critical care and services.
“Medicaid is the backbone of the whole-health, community-based care that organizations like ICL provide every single day,” said Jody Rudin, President and CEO of the Institute for Community Living (ICL). “From mobile mental health teams and supportive housing to substance use treatment and primary care coordination, Medicaid supports the full continuum of services that help New Yorkers with the most complex needs stay healthy, housed, and stable. We’re proud to stand with Congresswoman Velázquez to demand that Medicaid be protected—because without it, far too many New Yorkers will lose access to life-saving care.”
“The entire Wyckoff Heights Medical Center family, and the vibrant Brooklyn and Queens communities we care for every day are deeply grateful for the efforts of our Congresswoman Velázquez, our entire Congressional Delegation, Governor Hochul, the New York State Department of Health, our partners in Labor, and our City and Borough Leaders for their diligent and relentless work to mitigate the impact of the impending breathtaking cuts to New York’s Medicaid and safety net programs,” said Vali Gache, President & CEO of WHMC. “Now more than ever, our providers, patients, labor allies, and our governmental leaders across New York City and New York State must band together to ensure that we maintain excellent access to high quality care for vulnerable communities like ours. We stand in solidarity with Congresswoman Velázquez and her allies in this critically important campaign to secure a healthy future for all New Yorkers.”
“At VNS Health, we support Veterans, many over 100-years-old, who rely on Medicaid for home-based care when VA facilities are full, unavailable, or too far from home,” said Satish Dhanna, LMSW, Supervisor of the VNS Health Veterans Program and U.S. Army Veteran. “For disabled and low-income Veterans, who often face unique healthcare challenges related to their service, Medicaid often means the difference between managing chronic conditions at home or ending up hospitalized—the difference between aging with dignity or living in crisis. Medicaid reduces out-of-pocket costs and provides a safety net for the most vulnerable members of our Veteran community. Cuts to Medicaid will harm those service men, women and families, who’ve already sacrificed so much.”
Velázquez pledged to continue fighting to reverse the cuts and protect the health care programs that millions of New Yorkers rely on.
“We are going to make sure every New Yorker, and every American understands the harm this bill will do,” she said. “And we won’t stop until we protect and strengthen Medicaid for the families who need it most.”
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