FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, May 4, 2017
Today, after months of unsuccessful attempts, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that would repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (also known as Obamacare).
Fourteen California Congressional Representatives voted in favor of the repeal, which cuts $400 million from California’s IHSS program by 2020. It also guts the federal Medicaid program, which funds over 50% of IHSS, and eliminates vital protections for people with pre-existing conditions – including the Californians with disabilities and seniors that UDW’s nearly 100,000 home providers serve.
“This bill is a devastating attack on seniors and people with disabilities,” said UDW Executive Director Doug Moore in a statement on Thursday morning.
California will lose billions of dollars of federal funding for Medi-Cal. This will force our state to significantly reduce benefits and services. The impact on the IHSS program, which provides life-saving care to over half a million low-income seniors and people with disabilities, will be staggering. Loss of federal funding will mean less hours of care for our neighbors and loved ones. Care for some will be eliminated completely.
“It is not an exaggeration to say that Trumpcare will put lives at risk,” Moore continued. “And it is unconscionable that our elected leaders in Congress voted to support what amounts to a death sentence for many low-income sick and aging Americans. Our union will not stand for this, and these legislators will be held accountable for their actions.”
We call on the US Senate to stop this bill in its tracks.
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United Domestic Workers of America (UDW)/AFSCME Local 3930 is a home care union made up of nearly 100,000 in-home caregivers across the state of California. UDW caregivers provide care through the state’s In-Home Supportive Services program (IHSS), which allows over half a million California seniors and people with disabilities to stay safe and healthy at home
