02.24.2025 / Statement

The Health and Economic Security of Millions of Americans Will Be Imperiled If The House Budget Resolution Is Passed

The health and economic security of millions of Americans will be imperiled if the House budget resolution is passed. Every Member of Congress should vote against it.

As the House of Representatives prepares to vote on a budget package that would slash hundreds of billions of dollars from Medicaid and the Child Health Insurance Program (CHIP), five leading health organizations (Association for Community Affiliated Plans, Community Catalyst, Families USA, First Focus Campaign for Children, and the National Alliance on Mental Illness) urge Representatives to vote against any budget deal that would starve a health program that serves families and communities across America. These health organizations include diverse stakeholders representing providers, plans, hospitals, consumers, and communities all committed to protecting access and quality in the Medicaid and CHIP programs.

Medicaid and CHIP’s foundational role in the health of our neighbors and local communities cannot be overstated. The program provides insurance for 37 million children, nearly 10 million people with disabilities and 30 million expectant mothers, parents, and adults without kids at home. They cover more than 40 percent of all births in the country and pay 61 percent of the nation’s long-term care costs. Furthermore, Medicaid is a critically important source of financial support that keeps rural hospitals open to serve the health needs of their communities and is the single largest funder of mental health and substance use disorder services in the country. Already a lean program, the scale of the cuts required by the budget resolution would force the loss of coverage for millions, and drastic cuts would have cascading effects on patients, hospitals, community clinics, nursing homes and state budgets – delaying care and driving up costs for Americans.

Americans sent their representatives to Washington with the clear message to lower costs, but the proposed cuts to Medicaid will have the opposite effect, shifting costs on to families already living paycheck to paycheck, and on to hospitals and clinics already struggling to keep their doors open. They will lead to worse health and financial outcomes as families are forced to delay care and accrue more medical debt.

We urge Members of Congress to consider the harm to their constituents and communities in the wake of indiscriminate cuts and urge them to vote against the House Budget Resolution.