Alabama Arise, 111 partner groups urge Congress to oppose cuts to Medicaid, SNAP

Congressional leaders are considering cuts to health coverage, food assistance and other human services in a push to offset the cost of tax cuts for wealthy households. The amount of potential Medicaid and SNAP cuts in the House budget resolution would be roughly equal to the cost of extending tax breaks for the wealthiest 1% of households, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Alabama Arise joined 111 partner groups in a letter asking Alabama’s congressional delegation to oppose cuts to Medicaid and SNAP. The full text of the letter is below.

Letter text

Dear Senators Tuberville and Britt and Representatives Aderholt, Rogers, Sewell, Palmer, Moore, Strong and Figures,

We write to request respectfully that, in your deliberations about federal budget and tax policy, you ensure that Congress protects the health and nutrition safety net that keeps so many Alabama children fed and healthy and that helps so many Alabama families make ends meet.

As you know, federal Medicaid funds 72% of the cost of Alabama Medicaid. At a current level of $6.8 billion, Medicaid is the largest source of federal funds in our state’s budget. Medicaid provides health coverage and protection from medical bankruptcy for 1 in 5 Alabamians. Medicaid funding also supports the ALL Kids program, making Alabama a leader among our neighbors with the highest rate of children’s health insurance in the Deep South.

It is impossible to overstate the extent to which federal Medicaid funding is integral to the strength and effectiveness of the health care infrastructure that benefits all Alabamians. Medicaid provides:

Pediatric care for half of all Alabama children, including the majority of children with intensive health care needs.
Perinatal care for half of Alabama pregnant mothers and their babies.
Long-term services and supports for 3 in 4 nursing home residents, and for most children and adults who receive nursing care at home.
The leading source of health insurance in rural communities, and an essential source of funding for hard-pressed rural hospitals and clinics.
Direct grants to hospitals to sustain costly services, such as neonatal intensive care units, which serve their entire communities.

In short, any cuts to federal Medicaid funding, restrictive policies aimed at encouraging disenrollment just to reduce costs, or caps that limit the ability of federal funding to keep pace with inflation would directly impact more than 1 million Alabama children and families. Such cuts would damage our communities, devastate our state budget and weaken Alabama’s economy.

Similarly, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is the most effective anti-hunger program in the United States. And in a time of persistently higher food prices, it is more important than ever. Every dollar of federal SNAP funding not only affords families the necessary nutrition, but it also helps stimulate local economies.

More than 2 in 3 SNAP households are families with children. SNAP provides vital help for working families, as well as for older Alabamians and people with disabilities. Cuts in federal SNAP funding would directly harm the 1 in 7 Alabamians – more than 750,000 people – who participate in the program and would have broader negative effects on communities across our state.

For all of these reasons, we respectfully urge you to protect federal funding for Medicaid and SNAP, two vital programs that make life better across Alabama. If you have any questions or concerns regarding these matters, please do not hesitate to contact us. We thank you for your public service.

Signatories

Respectfully submitted,

1. AIDS Alabama – Birmingham
2. AIDS Alabama South – Mobile
3. Alabama Appleseed Center for Law and Justice
4. Alabama Arise
5. Alabama Academy of Family Physicians
6. Alabama Association of Nonprofits
7. Alabama Black Women’s Roundtable
8. Alabama Chapter – American Academy of Pediatrics
9. Alabama Coalition for Immigrant Justice
10. Alabama Disabilities Advocacy Program
11. Alabama Election Protection Network
12. Alabama Forward
13. Alabama Institute for Social Justice
14. Alabama Interfaith Power & Light
15. Alabama Network of Family Resource Centers
16. Alabama Poor People’s Campaign
17. Alabama Possible
18. Alabama Rivers Alliance
19. Alabama Rural Ministry – Auburn
20. Alabama State Association of Cooperatives
21. Alabama State Conference of the NAACP
22. Alabama Sustainable Agriculture Network
23. All Nations Church – Montgomery
24. American Association of University Women the Shoals
25. American College of Nurse-Midwives Alabama Affiliate
26. American Lung Association
27. Auburn United Methodist Church
28. Baptist Church of the Covenant – Birmingham
29. Bay Area Women Coalition, Inc.
30. Beloved Community Church UCC – Birmingham
31. Birmingham Friends Meeting (Quaker)
32. BirthWell Partners
33. Black Belt Community Foundation
34. Center for Fair Housing – Mobile
35. Children First
36. Church & Society Committee, Anniston First United Methodist Church
37. Church Women United – Montgomery
38. Collaborative Solutions
39. Community Enabler Developer, Inc. – Anniston
40. Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham
41. Community Foundation of Northeast Alabama
42. Destiny Driven, Inc.
43. East Lake United Methodist Church – Birmingham
44. Educational Consulting and Training Group, LLC
45. Fairhope Unitarian Fellowship
46. Faith in Action Alabama
47. Feeding Alabama
48. Fernland Community Coalition Group
49. First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) – Montgomery
50. First Congregational UCC – Birmingham
51. Five Horizons Health Services
52. Forest Lake United Methodist Church
53. Grace Presbyterian Church – Tuscaloosa
54. Gratitude Foundation
55. GASP – Birmingham
56. Greater Birmingham Ministries
57. Hispanic Catholic Social Services – La Casita
58. Hometown Organizing Project
59. Huntsville Bail Fund
60. Independent Living Center – Mobile
61. Interfaith Mission Service
62. Jackson District Women’s Home & Overseas Missionary Society A.M.E. Zion Church
63. Jobs to Move America
64. The Kelsey – Birmingham
65. Kennedy Strategic Communications
66. The Knights & Orchids Society
67. League of Women Voters of Alabama
68. Live2Serve
69. Low Income Housing Coalition of Alabama
70. LunarLab Benefit LLC – Birmingham
71. Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church
72. Mary’s House Catholic Worker – Birmingham
73. The Mothers of Gynecology – Montgomery
74. National Association of Social Workers – Alabama Chapter
75. National Lawyers Guild – Alabama Chapter
76. North Alabama Area Labor Council
77. North Alabama Conference, United Methodist Church – Advocacy for Social Justice Team
78. North Alabama Peace Network
79. One Roof – Birmingham
80. Open Table UCC – Mobile
81. The People’s Justice Council
82. The People’s Loan Program
83. Professional Association of Social Workers in HIV & AIDS (PASWHA)
84. Progressive Women of Northeast Alabama
85. PROJECT.HELP.USA
86. Project Hope to Abolish the Death Penalty
87. Saint Stephen’s Episcopal Church – Birmingham
88. Sapps Community Center, Inc.
89. Shoals Educational Enrichment Resources
90. St. Paul UMC – Birmingham
91. The Sisters
92. Sisters of St. Joseph – Selma
93. Sisters of Mercy in Alabama – Mobile
94. The 6:52 Project Foundation, Inc.
95. Southern Poverty Law Center
96. Southern Rural Black Women’s Initiative
97. Stand Up Mobile
98. Thrive Alabama
99. Together for Hope – Black Belt
100. Trinity Gardens Community Civic Club
101. Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Auburn
102. Unitarian Universalist Church of Birmingham
103. Unitarian Universalist Church of Huntsville
104. Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Montgomery
105. Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Tuscaloosa
106. United for a Fair Economy
107. United Way of West Alabama
108. United Women of Color – Huntsville
109. Valley Christian Church – Mountain Brook
110. VOICES for Alabama’s Children
111. WAWC Healthcare – Tuscaloosa
112. West End Community Church – Birmingham