In the early hours of May 22nd, the House of Representatives narrowly passed H.R. 1, a bill that would strip millions of people of their Medicaid coverage and further restrict access to reproductive health care. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that at least 8.6 million people will lose health insurance coverage by 2034 under this bill.
Specifically, this bill would:
- Ban Medicaid funding from going to Planned Parenthood health centers. Too many people on Medicaid already live in contraceptive deserts, but this could leave them with nowhere to go for basic care like contraception, STI testing and treatment, pap smears and breast cancer screenings.
- Effectively implements a marketplace-wide ban on abortion coverage in ACA health plans, making it even harder for people to access abortion care when their health plan can’t cover it.
- Institute Medicaid work requirements, eligibility checks, and other red tape that results in working people who qualify being kicked off coverage anyway. Work requirements have been shown to be ineffective and fiscally wasteful in states that have instituted them. Most adults on Medicaid are already working; those who aren’t are either disabled or are parents of dependent children.
- Ban Medicaid from covering gender-affirming care. Research is clear that withholding gender-affirming care can result in physical and mental harm to people who rely on that care.
Medicaid plays a pivotal role in providing health care for millions, including contraception. Two-thirds of adult women on Medicaid are in their reproductive years. 1 in 3 women have gone to Planned Parenthood for care. Sixty-four percent of Planned Parenthood health centers are located in medically underserved areas, rural areas, or areas with health professional shortages.
Red tape, banning coverage of abortion and gender-affirming care, and blocking people on Medicaid from getting care at Planned Parenthood will only kick people out of the program, eliminate places they can go for care, and harm the health of millions. Tell your Senators to protect Medicaid and reproductive well-being by rejecting HR 1!
Contact your Senators and tell them to reject HR 1 which would cut Medicaid and harm health care access. Let your Senators know why Medicaid is important to you and the millions of people across the country who rely on it to get the care they need, including contraception. Please add in additional messaging or your personal story on why the bill passed by the House would be harmful. Please be respectful when sending your message.
Thank you for taking action!