Michigan health advocates slam Trump bill cutting down Medicaid
Nathan Dunbar, a mental health worker for Community Mental Health Authority of Clinton, Eaton, Ingham Counties speaks on a panel of health advocate in Lansing, Michigan about the importance of Medicaid on May 21, 2025 | Photo: Anna Liz Nichols
Medicaid is not a burden on taxpayers or the government, it's a lifeline for families to live with dignity, Ruby Farmer told a panel of health advocates in Lansing on Wednesday. As Congress considers a bill backed by President Donald Trump that would cut hundreds of billions of dollars from Medicaid over the next decade, Farmer shared her concerns for Michigan's Medicaid-funded Home Health program, which has allowed her to care for her son Omar.
Her goal was to help Omar, now 40 years old and living with autism, to live as independently as possible, Farmer said. It took years of patience and love, and he's learned many life skills to keep him healthy and happy, but Farmer said Omar will always depend on her and without Medicaid, families may not be able to tell their stories of triumph through care.
'Medicaid is part of many of the stories and we cannot allow them to lose their lifeline. To be a home care worker, you must understand and believe that the core that all people deserve, love, respect, dignity, health and opportunity to live their life on their own terms,' Farmer said. 'Care is a blessing, not a burden, and we are called to serve others. I wish more people understood, and that I wish more people felt the way that I do.'
On Tuesday, Trump met with U.S. House Republicans, pushing a unified front for a speedy passage of legislation he has called a 'big, beautiful bill,'that would, amongst other financial reforms like extending his 2017 tax cuts, axe more than $800 billion in funding, slated to mostly come from Medicaid.
House Speaker Mike Johnson has chosen Memorial Day as the deadline for the House to pass the bill off the floor, but a consensus amongst Republicans hasn't been reached yet.
Talking to the media Tuesday on Capitol Hill, alongside Michigan U.S. Rep. Lisa McClain (R-Bruce Twp.), chair of the House Republican Conference, Trump stumped for his tax bill slamming the few Republicans that haven't backed the effort, namely Kentucky Republican U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie.
'We don't want any waste, fraud or abuse. It's very simple, waste, fraud, abuse, other than that we're leaving it, Medicare, we're leaving it,' Trump said Tuesday.
Medicaid and Medicare are different programs, Michael Daeschlein, Long-Term Care Policy Specialist for Michigan Elder Justice Initiative said on the panel. Daeschlein pointed out Medicare, which provides health insurance for people who are 65 years old or older does not cover the long term care many Michiganders need as senior citizens, whereas Medicaid, which provides health care coverage for individuals with low-incomes, does cover such care.
Michigan has an aging population, Daeschlein said, and many of the direct care worker jobs in the state are remaining open as those in the industry are doing the work of multiple professionals in an 'unsustainable' system.
Medicaid covers three in five nursing home residents, or 33,000 Michiganders, Daeschlein said, which is many families' last option to ensure their loved ones are safe and taken care of.
'It's important to understand that over 300,000 Michiganders on Medicare rely on Medicaid to pay their out-of-pocket expenses, their co-pays, their deductibles… if it wasn't for Medicaid, 300,000 people wouldn't be able to make Medicare work for them,' Daeschlein said.
Cutting Medicaid would perpetuate cycles of addiction and incarceration, working against efforts around the state to help Michiganders heal and contribute in their communities, Nathan Dunbar, a mental health worker with Community Mental Health Authority of Clinton, Eaton, and Ingham Counties said.
By the time someone goes into rehab or goes to prison, they likely don't have a job anymore and will require Medicaid in order to access recovery resources to get their life back on track, Dunbar said.
The best available access to treatment is through Medicaid, Dunbar said, adding that private insurance companies don't 'roll the dice' on people who are battling addiction.
'…but those people still need help and those people's kids still need help,' Dunbar said. 'I resent people calling my fellow Michiganders waste, and I resent people calling my fellow Michiganders abuse, and I resent people calling my fellow Michiganders fraud. None of those things are what's happening. What is happening is our government is being unresponsive to the needs of its people.'
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