Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and other Republican leaders in the Senate are attempting to push through a repeal of the Affordable Care Act by September 30, 2017. (Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Sep 22, 2017
With nearly unheard of consensus, and despite assurances from serial liar President Donald Trump that the bill is actually "great" and would "help people," all 50 state Medicaid directors have signed on to a letter denouncing Republicans' latest effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
"Our members are committed to ensuring that the programs we operate improve health outcomes while also being fiscally responsible to state and federal taxpayers," reads the letter (pdf) published Thursday by the National Association of Medicaid Directors (NAMD).
"We are concerned that this legislation would undermine these efforts in many states and fail to deliver our collective goal of an improved healthcare system," it continues, outlining why the Republicans' proposal, coauthored by Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.), is flawed and echoing concerns that Congressional Budget Office will not have time to fully analyze the bill's impacts until after the vote planned for next week.
\u201cSeriously. This is BANANAS. \n\nYou couldn't get ALL 50 state Medicaid directors to agree any anything else in health care policy. https://t.co/mKKwbSO1dw\u201d— Chris Murphy (@Chris Murphy) 1506044443
Many others, including Andy Slavitt, who ran the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services under former President Barack Obama, expressed similar surprise about the joint letter. "Very unusual," Slavitt said in a tweet.
The legislation would halt Medicaid expansion and restructure how it receives federal funding, implementing a block grant system that the directors caution "would constitute the largest intergovernmental transfer of financial risk from the federal government to the states in our country's history."
The plan would require states to craft their own programs by January of 2020, which the directors claim would be next to impossible, "especially considering the apparent lack of federal funding in the bill to support these critical activities."
"With only a few legislative days left for the entire process to conclude," the letter declares, "there clearly is not sufficient time for policymakers, governors, Medicaid directors, or other critical stakeholders to engage in the thoughtful deliberation necessary to ensure successful long-term reforms."
The Medicaid directors join a broad and diverse coalition of politicians, healthcare providers, progressive leaders, late-night talk show hosts, and voters opposed to the GOP's last-ditch repeal effort.
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. Join with us today! |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
With nearly unheard of consensus, and despite assurances from serial liar President Donald Trump that the bill is actually "great" and would "help people," all 50 state Medicaid directors have signed on to a letter denouncing Republicans' latest effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
"Our members are committed to ensuring that the programs we operate improve health outcomes while also being fiscally responsible to state and federal taxpayers," reads the letter (pdf) published Thursday by the National Association of Medicaid Directors (NAMD).
"We are concerned that this legislation would undermine these efforts in many states and fail to deliver our collective goal of an improved healthcare system," it continues, outlining why the Republicans' proposal, coauthored by Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.), is flawed and echoing concerns that Congressional Budget Office will not have time to fully analyze the bill's impacts until after the vote planned for next week.
\u201cSeriously. This is BANANAS. \n\nYou couldn't get ALL 50 state Medicaid directors to agree any anything else in health care policy. https://t.co/mKKwbSO1dw\u201d— Chris Murphy (@Chris Murphy) 1506044443
Many others, including Andy Slavitt, who ran the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services under former President Barack Obama, expressed similar surprise about the joint letter. "Very unusual," Slavitt said in a tweet.
The legislation would halt Medicaid expansion and restructure how it receives federal funding, implementing a block grant system that the directors caution "would constitute the largest intergovernmental transfer of financial risk from the federal government to the states in our country's history."
The plan would require states to craft their own programs by January of 2020, which the directors claim would be next to impossible, "especially considering the apparent lack of federal funding in the bill to support these critical activities."
"With only a few legislative days left for the entire process to conclude," the letter declares, "there clearly is not sufficient time for policymakers, governors, Medicaid directors, or other critical stakeholders to engage in the thoughtful deliberation necessary to ensure successful long-term reforms."
The Medicaid directors join a broad and diverse coalition of politicians, healthcare providers, progressive leaders, late-night talk show hosts, and voters opposed to the GOP's last-ditch repeal effort.
With nearly unheard of consensus, and despite assurances from serial liar President Donald Trump that the bill is actually "great" and would "help people," all 50 state Medicaid directors have signed on to a letter denouncing Republicans' latest effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
"Our members are committed to ensuring that the programs we operate improve health outcomes while also being fiscally responsible to state and federal taxpayers," reads the letter (pdf) published Thursday by the National Association of Medicaid Directors (NAMD).
"We are concerned that this legislation would undermine these efforts in many states and fail to deliver our collective goal of an improved healthcare system," it continues, outlining why the Republicans' proposal, coauthored by Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.), is flawed and echoing concerns that Congressional Budget Office will not have time to fully analyze the bill's impacts until after the vote planned for next week.
\u201cSeriously. This is BANANAS. \n\nYou couldn't get ALL 50 state Medicaid directors to agree any anything else in health care policy. https://t.co/mKKwbSO1dw\u201d— Chris Murphy (@Chris Murphy) 1506044443
Many others, including Andy Slavitt, who ran the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services under former President Barack Obama, expressed similar surprise about the joint letter. "Very unusual," Slavitt said in a tweet.
The legislation would halt Medicaid expansion and restructure how it receives federal funding, implementing a block grant system that the directors caution "would constitute the largest intergovernmental transfer of financial risk from the federal government to the states in our country's history."
The plan would require states to craft their own programs by January of 2020, which the directors claim would be next to impossible, "especially considering the apparent lack of federal funding in the bill to support these critical activities."
"With only a few legislative days left for the entire process to conclude," the letter declares, "there clearly is not sufficient time for policymakers, governors, Medicaid directors, or other critical stakeholders to engage in the thoughtful deliberation necessary to ensure successful long-term reforms."
The Medicaid directors join a broad and diverse coalition of politicians, healthcare providers, progressive leaders, late-night talk show hosts, and voters opposed to the GOP's last-ditch repeal effort.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.