On Tuesday, a coalition of health advocates hosted a press conference where Medi-Cal recipients, including seniors and disabled patients, warned that Republican budget and tax plans could lead to cuts in Medicaid and federal health programs.
Congress is working to prevent a government shutdown with a new spending bill. The House passed the bill Tuesday without proposed cuts to Medicaid (Medi-Cal in California), Medicare and Social Security.
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office shared in a report last week that Republican budget plans will likely require cuts to Medicaid or Medicare.
Kiran Savage-Sangwan, the executive director of the California Pan-Ethnic Health Network, says there is no alternative to relying on federal spending to fund Medi-Cal. Two thirds of the program’s funding comes from the federal government, according to the California Budget & Policy Center.
“The state of California pays our taxes to the federal government with the understanding that programs that Californians rely on will be supported,” said Savage-Sangwan. “Therefore, the federal funding has to continue to come to support those programs there.”
Lawrence Waterman lives in Lake Elsinore and serves as a homecare worker for his two disabled daughters. Waterman says without Medi-Cal benefits, families like his could face extreme hardship.
