6 days ago
South Dakota coalition forms to oppose Medicaid cuts
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) – A new coalition of healthcare professionals, patient advocates, rural leaders and small business owners from across the state is launching 'Hands Off Medicaid – South Dakota' to oppose proposed federal cuts to Medicaid and ACA subsidies.
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'This bill represents a complete retreat from decades of bipartisan progress in expanding access to health care,' said Earl Pomeroy, former North Dakota Congressman and Insurance Commissioner in a press release.
The group emphasized the proposed cuts would be especially harmful to rural South Dakota health centers.
More than 147,000 South Dakotans currently rely on Medicaid, according to the South Dakota Department of Social Services (DSS).
'Medicaid gives people access to lifesaving medications and treatments like insulin, asthma inhalers, prenatal care, and cancer screenings. For almost 27,000 South Dakotans, this bill means losing coverage entirely.' said Ben Hanson, Head of Government Affairs for the American Cancer Society – South Dakota in a press release.
The coalition formed after the U.S. House passed a budget to cut Medicaid coverage, which would pull coverage from thousands, hurt rural hospital funding, and threaten mental health and addiction services–despite only 9% of SD voters supporting the cuts.
'When coverage rates fall, rural health centers lose critical funding — putting access to primary care, maternal care, dental services, and behavioral health at risk for everyone in those communities.' said Shelley Ten Napel, CEO of the Community HealthCare Association of the Dakotas in a press release.
The coalition plans to continue expanding in the coming weeks and months, and urges South Dakotans to contact Senators Mike Rounds and John Thune about protecting Medicaid as the budget bill heads to the U.S. Senate.
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