Latest news with #lowincome
CNN
a day ago
- Business
- CNN
Are you concerned about Republicans' proposed changes to Medicaid? Tell us about it
Congressional Republicans are considering making some big changes to Medicaid, which provides health insurance to more than 71 million low-income Americans. It could affect millions of people, from children to working-age adults to senior citizens. Are you enrolled in Medicaid and concerned about how the proposals could affect you? Tell us about it.
National Post
2 days ago
- Business
- National Post
The federal dental care plan is expanding. Here's how you can get access
Article content As of May 2025, all remaining eligible adults aged 18 to 64 can apply for dental coverage, with benefits beginning as early as June 1. Article content Since its launch, 3.4 million Canadians were approved to be part of the plan, and 1.7 million have already received care, Ottawa says. The program initially prioritized seniors, children, and people with disabilities, notes the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario. Article content Applications are now being accepted throughout the month of May based on age: ages 55 to 64 since May 1, ages 35 to 54 since May 15, and ages 18 to 34 as of May 29. Article content Article content How do you qualify? Article content To qualify, applicants must be Canadian residents for tax purposes, not have access to private dental insurance (for example, through employer or pension plans), have filed their 2024 tax return (and partner's if applicable) and have a net income less than $90,000. Article content These criteria aim to make dental care more affordable for people without access to private insurance, particularly targeting low- and middle-income Canadians, Ottawa says. Article content What does the plan do? Article content The CDCP reduces or eliminates out-of-pocket costs for essential dental services. This could be beneficial for families and individuals who have delayed or avoided dental visits due to cost, enabling them to receive regular check-ups and timely treatments. Article content With the expansion, more Canadians will be able to access preventive services like cleanings and check-ups, which help reduce the risk of severe dental issues and improve long-term oral health outcomes. Article content Article content While the plan covers many essential services, not all treatments are included, and some patients may still face balance billing if the cost of care exceeds the plan's reimbursement rates, says the RCDSO. However, the expansion is expected to make dental care more affordable and accessible for eligible Canadians. Article content Article content Several new dental services are now covered, including tomography, oral surgery anesthesia, injections and assessments for temporomandibular joint (jaw) disorders, and orthodontic services (covered only in cases of strict medical need and with pre-authorization; subject to a maximum spending limit).
Forbes
2 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
How The Big Beautiful Bill Hurts Black America
US Capitol. This morning, somewhere in America, a single mother rises before the sun. She takes two buses to a job that barely covers her rent. After a long day, she comes home just long enough to change clothes and help her ten-year-old with his homework before heading out to a second shift at a fast-food restaurant across town. Her son's inhaler is covered by Medicaid. Most months, her SNAP benefits run out about 10 days early. When that happens, she stretches the grits, waters down the milk, and prays that her son never has to carry the weight of his hunger or what it represents. This is her life. Day after day. Month after month. Year after year. And now, she's at risk of losing even the vital benefits that help her make ends meet. They call it the 'Big Beautiful Bill', though the name is a cruel contradiction. At a time when many families are struggling to keep their heads above water, it's hard to reconcile a proposal that slashes support for low-income households while expanding tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans. This bill would remove the social safety net for millions of Americans – Black, Brown, white, urban, rural, Republican, Democrat – by making President Trump's tax cuts for the wealthy permanent, but at a devastating cost: The GOP has long argued for entitlement reform under the guise of fiscal responsibility, but the party has never been blunter and more unapologetic in its position on who deserves help (the wealthy and influential) and who doesn't (working-class Americans scraping by in hopes of one day making a better life for themselves and their families). You have to ask: is cruelty the point? The GOP knows this bill will disproportionately punish the populations least equipped to handle such a fundamental disruption. Approximately 30% of Black Americans rely on Medicaid, despite representing about 14% of the population. One in five Black families rely on SNAP. Now, if this bill is signed into law, these students may decide to delay their academic plans while they take on a second job to pay for their education without the help of subsidized financial aid. Sadly, with this policy, some may never enroll in the first place. Black borrowers already carry more student debt than any other group, so the elimination of subsidized loans is a huge blow to Black students pursing post-secondary education, many of whom are the first in their families to do so. Meanwhile, those who stand to benefit the most from this bill - the top 1% - are sheltered from the hard choices and harm inherent to it. They don't have to choose between rent and medicine. Their children will never know the pain of going to bed on an empty stomach or putting off college because they can't afford the cost of attendance. Their wealth will continue to rise, while ours will stagnate. It's a familiar story: the rich get richer, and Black America is handed the crumbs – and the bill. The GOP will sell the bill as a return to 'fiscal discipline,' and that its passage is necessary to 'make America great again.' Despite their best efforts to hide the ball, their intent is crystal clear by what they prioritize in the bill and what they choose to cut. Proposals that shield the fortunes of billionaires are deemed non-negotiable, while programs that serve single mothers, Black children, and first-generation college students are dismissed as waste, fraud, and abuse. Black America has heard this story before. After the Civil Rights Act, Nixon's 'New Federalism,' often left urban, predominately Black communities susceptible to prolonged underinvestment and discrimination. Then came Reagan's 'welfare queen,' a not-so-subtle dog whistle designed to sway public opinion and justify the gutting of public assistance programs. Years later, Clinton, signed the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act , which replaced direct welfare assistance with TANF block grants. 'Personal responsibility,' sounds good in a headline, but TANF's rigid provisions made it harder for poor, Black families to get the support they once had a right to. And when the 2008 financial crisis hit, the federal government moved swiftly to rescue banks deemed 'too big to fail.' Meanwhile, Black homeowners – many targeted by predatory lenders – were left to fend for themselves. No bailouts. No safety net. Just lost homes, depleted savings, and shattered dignity. And unfortunately, Black homeownership never rebounded as data shows today. The decisions made in Capitol Hill in the coming weeks could deal the final blow to Black Americans already stretched thin and barely holding on. Will the single mother I mentioned earlier have to skip meals to cover her son's inhaler co-pay? Will a young Black student still see college as a realistic goal, or will subsidized student loans be eliminated before he even has a chance to apply? These families may never meet the architects of this bill, but make no mistake, they are deciding what parts of their lives matter and what parts are expendable all in the name of tax breaks for those who already have more than enough. The Civil Rights Act promised a level playing field. This bill flips that promise on its head. It treats fairness as a privilege, extended only to those who already have a seat at the table. That's how we find ourselves here, sixty years later, debating whether policy should expect children to outgrow hunger. It isn't just unjust. It's immoral. Our elected officials have two jobs: to run the government well, and more importantly, protect the most vulnerable among us from harm. With this bill, the House GOP has abandoned both. They'll hit the Sunday shows and, without a hint of irony, tell the American people this is responsible reform. But the only thing this bill responsibly protects is the stranglehold the wealthy have on working people just trying to survive. Don't fall for it. This bill isn't about fiscal responsibility or economic stability. And don't let them gaslight you into believing these were hard choices. They weren't. They were easy, calculated decisions made at the expense of people with the least power to push back. To them, the lives of those who will suffer the most simply don't matter. The single mother juggling two jobs to keep the lights on? She's dismissed as lazy. A burden. She should bootstrap harder. It's a familiar narrative – used for decades to justify cruelty in the name of policy. What other explanation could there be? GOP leaders lined up to gut programs that feed children, house seniors, and keep the sick alive. And for what? All to give more tax breaks to the ultra-wealthy, who already have more than enough. That's not a government tightening its belt. That's a government tightening its grip around the necks of working people. Any American - elected or otherwise - who dares to call that 'beautiful' is showing us exactly what – and who – they value. And it's not us.
CBS News
3 days ago
- Business
- CBS News
Over 1 million Pennsylvanians could be affected if LIHEAP ends under Trump's proposed budget, advocates warn
LIHEAP, the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, has long helped Pennsylvanians keep their heat on during the coldest months of the year. But now it could be in jeopardy. The Trump administration's proposed federal budget allocates zero dollars to LIHEAP, effectively ending the program. LIHEAP helps hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians each year, whether it's paying utility bills or providing emergency services. If the program disappears, the consequences could go far beyond just losing heat on a freezing day. With any delay, budget cut or complete elimination of the program, there could be devastating outcomes. "This is a program that really helps ensure that the roughly 1.2 million low-income Pennsylvanians across the state are going to be able to keep the heat on through the winter," said Elizabeth Marx, the executive director of the Pennsylvania Utility Law Project. The LIHEAP program provides cash grants, crisis assistance, emergency furnace repair and replacement, offering hundreds of millions of dollars in assistance every year. If the funding disappears, so do the services. "Families may not be able to put as much food on the table. They will cut their medicine in half. We've had clients who are using only half of the oxygen that they should be using or cutting their pills in half," said Marx. "We'll see more folks with health issues, we'll see higher incidents of housing insecurity that comes as a result of utility insecurity." Locally, organizations like the Holy Family Institute help thousands of people apply for LIHEAP assistance each year. Their services reach around 35,000 residents, many of them seniors on fixed incomes. "The fixed-income seniors who can't forecast the weather, they can't be prepared for a cold snap or an extended heat wave that causes their utility bills, whether it's gas or electric, to go above and beyond maybe what they've budgeted," said Michael Sexauer, the president of Holy Family Institute. The idea of the program ending, he says, is deeply concerning. "If the program goes away, then you're forcing those individuals, whether they're single moms or elderly or on a fixed income or someone in between, you're forcing them to make a decision of what they actually do pay for," Sexauer said. While smaller local programs exist, none can match the scale or reach of LIHEAP. "Those that rely on propane, oil and wood to heat their home, and a couple thousand in Pennsylvania still heat with coal, and all of those heating sources, folks can get emergency assistance for, and that will go away," Marx said. As of now, the proposed budget is still making its way through the federal government, with no clear indication whether it will pass or fail. In the meantime, officials urge residents who are struggling to never let bills go unpaid and to contact their utility companies or local agencies for help before it's too late.
Finextra
4 days ago
- Business
- Finextra
Finca builds new fintech platform powered by Thought Machine's Vault core
FINCA, a global leader in inclusive finance, has partnered with Thought Machine, the next-generation banking technology company, to launch '361 by FINCA', a transformative operating platform to scale financial inclusion, beginning in Africa. 0 To date, financial services providers (FSPs) have struggled to support the financial wellbeing of low-income customers, largely due to rigid, poorly tailored products and cumbersome loan assessment and enrollment processes. '361 by FINCA' is a first-of-a-kind platform powered by Vault Core, introducing new levels of configurability and efficiency previously unattainable for many FSPs in emerging markets. With Vault Core's real-time architecture and API-first design, FINCA will be able to deliver flexible, integrated financial products tailored to help low-income customers invest in opportunities, build financial resilience, and access streamlined, automated loan assessments and renewals. The technology will also allow FINCA to rapidly scale across African markets and integrate with customer service channels and interaction points. Thought Machine's modern technology and innovative approach position it to be the ideal partner for the platform—Vault Core is completely free from legacy code and designed for efficiency and scale. The '361 by FINCA' platform will seamlessly integrate into and enrich the functional capabilities of the existing business software stack. With Vault Core, FINCA gains the flexibility to launch innovative products tailored to the diverse needs of its customers, including smallholder farmers, families on the margins, and microentrepreneurs. Its real-time data capabilities and modular design mean faster rollouts, greater personalisation, and a more agile response to evolving market needs. 'We're building a new fintech platform that is fast, flexible, and deeply connected to people's lives,' said Herman Spruit, CEO, 361 by FINCA. 'With 361, powered by Thought Machine's technology, we can create innovative, personalised financial products that grow with people's lives—whether saving for school, starting a business, or supporting their families.' Paul Taylor, CEO and founder, Thought Machine, comments: 'This partnership reflects a deep commitment to using cloud-native technology to build world-class financial products that drive economic growth. Supported by modern core technology, banks are empowered to create a future where financial services are accessible to individuals everywhere. We look forward to working with FINCA to build the future of financial services across the continent.' The platform's build will be led by Ikigai Digital, a certified Thought Machine delivery partner known for its deep technical expertise and successful track record implementing Vault Core. Ikigai Digital's team of subject-matter experts has hands-on experience in platform operations, migration, and integration architecture, ensuring high-quality, end-to-end implementation. Andy Farmer, CEO, Ikigai, comments: 'Ikigai has formed a strategic partnership with FINCA to build and run a Microfinance Platform. Together, we are building a new business underpinned with cutting-edge technology that will provide huge flexibility for customers, driven by the shared mission to expand financial access in underserved markets and enhance the lives of millions of people.' The '361 by FINCA' operating platform will also offer white-labelling capabilities, allowing other organisations to leverage Vault Core's engine to deliver customised financial services to their customers. This approach breaks down traditional barriers to access, enabling a broader ecosystem of providers to accelerate financial inclusion across the continent.
