National Faith Org Applauds “Long-Overdue” Bill to Close Medicaid Coverage Gap in 12 States, Providing Health Access to Millions
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, July 13, 2021
Austin Schuler
aschuler@faithinpubliclife.org, (540) 280-3393
National Faith Org Applauds “Long-Overdue” Bill to Close Medicaid Coverage Gap in 12 States, Providing Health Access to Millions
[Washington, DC] Today, Rev. Jennifer Butler, CEO, Faith in Public Life, applauded the introduction of a bill from Sens. Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) to close the Medicaid expansion coverage gap in the 12 remaining states that have not done so, by providing eligible individuals with a federal fallback coverage option. Butler praised the Medicaid Saves Lives Act, saying:
“Federal action to end the health coverage gap for millions in states like Georgia, Florida, and North Carolina, where partisan politics have denied people healthcare, is long overdue. Faith in Public Life’s network of 50,000 religious leaders pushed hard for ACA passage over a decade ago and has been fighting for states to expand Medicaid to the uninsured during the pandemic. Unfortunately, some state lawmakers have consistently refused to expand coverage to millions who would be eligible for insurance under the program.
“Most people who would receive coverage under the new proposal are low-income people in working families who can’t afford private coverage but also don’t qualify for the state’s existing Medicaid program. In 2019, two-thirds of people in the coverage gap were low-wage workers and 60% were people of color.
“As a Christian, I follow a savior who healed the sick and told us that how we treat the least among us was the measure by which we would be judged. Healthcare is a matter of life and death, especially during the current pandemic. Medicaid expansion could have saved an estimated 15,600 adult lives between 2014 and 2017 alone.
“No matter where someone lives, what they look like, or how much money they make, all God’s children should have access to the healthcare they need to take care of themselves and their families. Congress must close the coverage gap for millions of Americans who have been denied coverage in the upcoming Build Back Better package.”
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Faith in Public Life is a national movement of clergy and faith leaders united in the prophetic pursuit of justice, equality and the common good. Together, with a network of over 50,000 leaders, they are leading the fight to advance just policies at the state and federal level that affirms our values and the human dignity of all.