AFSCME members made their voices heard and helped block right-wing lawmakers from gutting Medicaid as part of a broader bill aimed at dismantling the Affordable Care Act. But that doesn’t mean President Donald Trump and his allies in Congress are done trying to destroy Medicaid, which provides health insurance to 74 million Americans.

Leaders in Congress are still conjuring up plans to put Medicaid back on the chopping block. They’re eyeing hundreds of billions of dollars in cuts to the program in their proposed budget for fiscal year 2018, and they may use other vehicles as well to achieve their goal, such as their promise to enact legislation to cut taxes for the wealthy.

Any future effort to cut and cap Medicaid would not only result in public service and health care job losses, but would harm the most vulnerable among us – the elderly, children from low-income families and people with disabilities.

For 5 million Americans who receive home care and for the AFSCME members who provide that vital service, cuts and caps to Medicaid would have devastating consequences. These are the stories of three members of United Domestic Workers of America (UDW/AFSCME Local 3930), AFSCME’s largest affiliate of home care providers. UDW has launched a campaign to warn its members about Medicaid cuts Congress wants to enact. The union’s members depend on Medicaid to give their clients the level of care they need to live with dignity at home.

Two years ago, Helena Cardona, 32, was in a horrific car accident that left her paralyzed and in a wheelchair. When Cardona was released from the hospital, Paula Stinyard, her friend and home care provider, devoted herself to being Cardona’s home care provider.

“This is my calling, this is what I was meant to do,” says Stinyard.

Medicaid pays for Stinyard to provide the care and assistance Cardona needs to remain at home. It also pays for the medical treatment and medications Cardona needs for her injuries. If the program is cut or capped, Stinyard could lose her job as Helena’s health care provider.

“She wouldn’t be able to live independently at home; she wouldn’t be able to do the cleaning; she wouldn’t be able to do to her cooking; she wouldn’t be able to do her laundry, she wouldn’t be able to get to the store … she’ll end up in a facility,” says Stinyard.

Cardona says, “If I could no longer live at home, I could lose my freedom, my privacy. I really do hope Congress puts themselves in other people’s shoes ... there’s people out there that struggle.”
“If I could no longer live at home, I could lose my freedom, my privacy.” — Helena Cardona

Cherrish Vick, a member of AFSCME Maryland, is a social worker who has worked for the last nine years with adults who have physical and mental disabilities. She helps them with tasks such as bathing and grooming. For Vick and her patients, Medicaid is a lifeline. The program provides her patients with the means to access the quality care they need. The idea of Medicaid being cut hits close to home for Vick. “Family members will have to make the devastating choice between their jobs and caring for their loved ones. How can our country put people in that awful position?” says Vick. “When I think about what cutting Medicaid will do to my clients, it breaks my heart.”
— By Ray InoueLearn MoreDavid Haskins

David Haskins left his job as a community organizer to take care of his husband, Walter Miller Jr., full time. Miller, 56, is nearly blind and suffers from other health complications that require someone to be by his side all the time.

Medicaid covers the costs of treating his eyes, transportation to and from doctor’s appointments and ensures that Haskins is paid to provide care for Miller full time. But it’s not only Miller who receives health coverage through Medicaid. Haskins does as well. If Congress votes to cut or cap Medicaid, Haskins, too, could lose his health insurance.

They worry that cuts and caps to Medicaid would make it impossible for them to pay their bills.

“We could never afford the copays,” says Miller.

Haskins says, “I would have to go back to work, at least part time, but then we’d have to pay someone (to care for Miller). I’ll have to pay money I don’t have to make sure that he’s OK when I’m not here.”
“I'll have to pay money I don't have to make sure that he's OK when I'm not here."— David Haskins
Wendy Smith, a member of AFSCME Maryland (Local 558), is a community health nurse for the Baltimore City Health Department. She has spent the last decade visiting families across the city, teaching her patients how to live healthy lives and guiding them through the complex health care system. Whether it’s primary care or a visit to the optometrist, Smith works hard to ensure that all of her patients – including nursing home residents – don’t miss out on their medical needs. “When you take away Medicaid, you take away people like me,” she said. “And when I’m not in the picture, people fall through the cracks. It’s that simple.”
— By Ray InoueLearn MoreLichele Cortes

Lichele Cortes' son, Gian Marco, has cerebral palsy. He was born with his umbilical cord wrapped around his neck, which cut off oxygen to his brain. Cortes says that when she gave birth doctors did not tell her what had happened to Gian Marco. It was only as he got older that she began to notice the signs of her son’s disability.

Cortes takes care of Gian Marco – who’s now 37 years old – in their home and must be on call 24 hours a day to make sure that he is attended to.

“I always took care of him. As a mother I always motivate him, he’s part of me,” she says. From age 22 through 25, Gian Marco didn’t have health insurance. Thanks to Medicaid, he now receives the care he needs.

As a mother living with a son with a disability, Cortes constantly fears that her son could have his health care taken away. “If he didn’t have Medicaid, he can die,” she says.

Gian Marco is aware of what’s happening in Congress. He watches the news every day, worried about the prospect of losing the care that only his mother can provide.
“If he didn't have Medicaid, he can die."— Lichele Cortes, referring to her son Sign Up to Fight Back!

We should savor our win – we stopped Congress from taking away health insurance from tens of millions of Americans. But we won’t be able to let down our guard as long as Paul Ryan, Mitch McConnell, and Donald Trump are running things in Washington. President Trump is back to threatening to sabotage America’s health care system through executive action, and both his and the House budget proposals include hundreds of billions of dollars in cuts to Medicaid. Stay involved in the fight to protect Medicaid and our health care system.

Medicaid by the Numbers

Medicaid, the country’s largest insurer, is a joint federal and state health care program for low-income families, people with disabilities and elderly Americans. Medicaid – not Medicare – is also the main source of long-term care coverage for most Americans. It provides major financing for hospitals, community health centers, physicians and nursing homes. Any funding cuts or caps to the program could result in significant health care and public service job losses.