A Message from NACHC, received by Squirrel Hill Health Center on June 23, 2017:
On Thursday, June 22nd, Senate leaders introduced healthcare legislation that would repeal and replace major provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Like the American Health Care Act (AHCA), which passed the House in May, the Senate bill makes major changes to the Medicaid program, which covers nearly half of all patients served by community health centers.
Health Center Advocates have spent this year making the case to policymakers at the federal, state and local levels about the importance of a strong Medicaid program. Unfortunately, the Senate bill represents a major step backward, damaging this important source of coverage for millions of health center patients. The bill rolls back the Medicaid expansion and makes even deeper cuts to the entire Medicaid program than those included in the House bill. Each of these changes would have a significant and detrimental impact on Health Centers and the patients they serve. For more information on the specific provisions of the Senate legislation visit the NACHC Blog.
Make no mistake: Medicaid is critical in that it provides coverage to nearly half of health center patients and is crucial to the financial stability of Health Centers as a whole. We are asking Health Center Advocates to take action NOW – make your voice heard about the importance of Medicaid to your patients and to your Health Center.
The potential for real solutions to the problems in our health care system exists, and can be achieved on a bipartisan basis – strengthening the Health Centers Program can serve as one of those solutions. Health centers are a real-world example of the power of bipartisan cooperation and consensus-driven policy. Now is the time to weigh in with your Senators: tell them the Senate proposal is the wrong path forward, and ask them instead to pursue common sense improvements to our healthcare system that stabilize markets and expand access to primary and preventive care to all.
Amanda Pears Kelly – Health Center Advocacy Network
http://www.hcadvocacy.org/