The Disability Rights Legal Center joins with millions of Americans with disabilities and dozens of disability rights organizations in protesting the Senate’s health care bill, released on Thursday, June 22nd.
In addition to repealing tax increases for higher income individuals and medical companies, the bill would deliver a devastating blow to those who rely on Medicaid, introducing caps on aid and cutting $834 billion from the program over the next decade. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the bill would cause another 22 million people to be uninsured by 2026.
Although millions of children, parents, elderly individuals, and people with disabilities rely on Medicaid, the bill promises to restrict access to life-saving services, compromise programs that allow people with disabilities to live and work in the community, and ultimately undermine our collective mission for access and inclusion.
Medicaid protects the most vulnerable among us. A cut to this program is a stunning step backward.
At DRLC, we still believe that inclusion benefits everyone and that by protecting low-income families, elderly individuals, and those with disabilities, we protect all of us. In our fight for equality, we face entrenched discrimination, embedded in local, state, and federal policies. Change takes time and persistence, but we will not rest until our society is a safer, kinder one.
Now, more than ever, organizations like DRLC are vital in the fight for inclusion for people of all abilities, but we need your help to advocate for access for all. Join us in championing the rights of those with disabilities or illness by calling your senators today.
