For our country’s older and disabled citizens, the light that now shines on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s health care bill has never looked so dark. The proposed Better Care Reconciliation Act sacrifices the well-being of our country’s most vulnerable population and benefits the wealthiest among us.
Today, over 65,000 Washingtonians depend on Medicaid to pay for critically important long-term services, and nearly 90,000 individuals are projected to need these services in over 10 years. Estimates suggest that by 2028, one-quarter of our state’s seniors will not have access to health care.
Based on Washington state’s Department of Social and Health Services’ estimated impacts of the Better Care Reconciliation Act, the cuts to Medicaid will cumulatively reduce federal funding to our state for long-term care by nearly $4 billion by 2028. This means families will be asked to do more for their parents or grandparents. This is already a care system under tremendous stress and without access to health care, low-income seniors will be at greater risk of overall health failure.
This is not a bill with heart; it’s mean-spirited. At its core, it strips away the dignity of our most vulnerable citizens at a time when they need our help and compassion. The Better Care Reconciliation Act, even as it may be amended, must be rejected. It takes our country down the wrong path at the absolute worst time with 10,000 baby boomers turning 65 every day and in need of health care at an alarming rate.
Deb Murphy, CEO
LeadingAge Washington
Tacoma
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