Tag Archive | donald-trump

Planned cuts to Medicaid and SNAP will strip away health care and food from hundreds of thousands of Michiganders

May22

“The U.S. House Republicans who voted for this unconscionable budget bill have effectively turned their backs on the people they are supposed to represent and are putting millions of lives at risk — all to further line the pockets of the wealthiest among us.”

The Michigan League for Public Policy issued the following statement today denouncing the U.S. House Republicans’ passage of a budget bill that could strip health care and food away from millions of Americans, including hundreds of thousands of Michiganders, in order to offset the cost of major tax giveaways for the wealthiest U.S. households and corporations. The statement can be attributed to League President and CEO Monique Stanton.

“This is ‘one big beautiful bill’ for millionaires and billionaires…not the rest of us. There is nothing beautiful about taking away food and health care from over half a million Michiganders and millions more around the country. Celebrating this bill means celebrating the loss of jobs, economic security and essential support systems in communities all around our state. People in our country, including those who call Michigan home, deserve so much better than this.”

“The cuts to Medicaid will strip essential care away from an estimated 740,000 people in Michigan through harsh work requirements, while making it more difficult for many more of the 1 in 4 Michiganders who rely on Medicaid to afford the care they need through a plan to impose co-pays. And beyond these very real human costs, the cuts will more than likely force hospitals and other health care facilities — especially those in rural areas — to close their doors, resulting in accessibility issues and major job losses within our already-stretched-too-thin health care system. And our state economy will suffer as a result of reduced federal revenue, additional administrative costs due to new and unnecessary red tape requirements and restrictions on how Michigan raises money to pay for Medicaid. The far-reaching impact of these cuts will be felt not just by those who participate in Medicaid, but by every person in our state.

“Members of our Congressional delegation have heard loud and clear that the vast majority of Michiganders across political views and party affiliations — 83% — don’t want cuts to Medicaid, yet they are forging ahead with this reckless plan. Today’s vote was a huge slap in the face for their constituents. Lives will be put at risk as a result.

“Food insecurity among families in Michigan will also continue to spike as a result of the cuts to SNAP at a time when food banks are already struggling to keep up with community needs. More than 300,000 Michiganders could see their benefits reduced or taken away entirely as a result of the expanded work requirements, which will do nothing to help people who are out of work find jobs faster. Taking food away from those who need it most, including children, will only result in worse outcomes in health, education and overall well-being. SNAP cuts will also impact grocery stores and Michigan’s agriculture industry— one of our state’s largest economic drivers.

“House Republicans have shown where their loyalty lies and it is not with the everyday, working people in our country. It’s with wealthy individuals, businesses and large corporations. Under this bill, the average tax filer earning $1 million or more would receive about $90,000 in tax breaks at the expense of life-saving programs like Medicaid and SNAP, while families earning less than $50,000 would get under $300 in tax cuts in 2027, amounting to less than a dollar a day. The tax cuts that families with low incomes will receive are negligible and will do nothing to help them considering the increased costs they will face if more tariffs are enacted and their health care and food is stripped away. And the expanded Child Tax Credit leaves 17 million children behind whose families earn too little, while the bill takes the credit completely away from 4.5 million citizen or legal permanent resident children by requiring both parents to have a Social Security number. 

“The U.S. House Republicans who voted for this unconscionable budget bill have effectively turned their backs on the people they are supposed to represent and are putting millions of lives at risk — all to further line the pockets of the wealthiest among us.”

3 bills passed out of U.S. Congressional committees would do irreparable damage to Michigan families and local economies

May15

The Michigan League for Public Policy is sounding the alarm on three bills that advanced yesterday. Congressional House Republicans set the stage for the largest cuts to Medicaid and SNAP in the history of those programs, threatening the health and economic security of Michiganders. 

The budget bills passed by the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce, the U.S. House Committee on Agriculture, and the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means include:  

  • At least $625 billion in cuts to Medicaid through work requirements for people who receive coverage through the Medicaid expansion, various other red tape requirements that will reduce coverage and restrictions on how Michigan raises money to pay for Medicaid, among other changes.  
  • Roughly $300 billion in cuts to SNAP through harsh work requirements for older adults and parents of school-aged children, as well as a requirement that states, for the first time in the 50-year history of the program, pay for a share of food benefits. Michigan would need to come up with over $760 million each year. To put that into perspective, that is about 80% of the entire annual budget for the Michigan State Police. 
  • A tax plan that would increase deficits by $3.8 trillion over 10 years, providing an average tax cut of $65,000 for people with incomes in the top 1%, while doing little for low- and moderate-income families.  

“We’re gravely concerned that House Republicans have put aside the needs of their constituents and of their states’ economies by passing these harmful bills out of committees yesterday. To put life-saving programs like Medicaid and SNAP on the chopping block in order to create tax cuts that mainly benefit the wealthy is egregious,” says Monique Stanton, MLPP CEO. “All this is coming on top of a slew of executive orders designed to intimidate and threaten large swaths of the country, and sweeping, senseless cuts to federal jobs, public education, nonprofit services, crucial research projects and more. We are calling for lawmakers to put their constituents—and their country—first and put a stop to this reckless behavior.  

“Michigan’s economy grows when families can afford the basics and incomes are strong. This does the exact opposite—gutting food and health care assistance and leaving people who are already hungry or sick to fall even further behind as prices and tariffs climb.

“More than 2.6 million Michiganders—1 in 4 people in our state—depend on Medicaid for essential care. 

“But under this plan, 740,000 Michiganders who gained coverage through the Healthy Michigan Plan might lose it again if House Republicans enact work requirements. Those requirements would create more red tape, which could take away coverage from children, seniors and people with disabilities. Even if people keep their coverage, they might not be able to afford even basic medical treatment due to a plan to impose co-pays. We could also see hospital closures and job losses, resulting in economic losses in communities, especially rural areas.


“And cuts to SNAP threaten the nutrition of over 300,000 Michiganders who could see their food assistance benefits cut or taken away entirely under the House Republicans’ plan to expand work requirements to older adults and parents of school-aged kids. Taking away benefits from parents harms kids, too. Kids won’t get enough to eat, and their health and school performance will suffer. 

“Most SNAP participants who can work, do. In fact, 3 in 4 SNAP households in Michigan have at least one adult working. And for those who don’t have jobs, taking food away will do nothing to help them find work more quickly. Instead, it punishes many who are working, burdening them with red tape and time-consuming documentation.

“Everything that we know is critical to Michigan’s growth — bringing down maternal mortality rates, making sure older folks can afford their prescriptions, making sure kids and families have the nutrition they need — that’s all at stake now.

“And for what? To make sure more wealthy people get a tax cut. 

“Pushing through $1.5 trillion in cuts to basic needs programs to pay for tax cuts that disproportionately benefit the wealthy is short-sighted and shows that these lawmakers aren’t thinking about the people they serve. In Michigan, rural and northern counties have a higher percentage of folks who rely on Medicaid and SNAP and a higher percentage of folks living in poverty than most other counties. People living in these areas already have more limited access to the things they need, and taking food off their tables and health care away from their kids is not the answer. 

“And guess what? The cuts won’t help with the deficit. Even with the dismantling of federal funding for food assistance and health care, the current plan would still increase deficits by $3.8 trillion over 10 years.  

“Plus, working families with lower wages will see next to nothing from the tax cut provisions. The proposed expansion of the Child Tax Credit (CTC) leaves out up to 20 million children in working families nationwide. They won’t get the full credit because their families’ incomes are too low.  And millions of people will see tax increases if tariffs are enacted. The tariffs would likely erase a large portion of forthcoming tax cuts for low-income households, those making less than roughly $13,840. 

It’s important to note that many of these purported ‘tax cuts for working families,’ including removing the tax on tips and overtime, and the increase in the CTC are only temporary, all set to expire at the end of 2028. But many of the tax cuts for upper-income households will remain permanent, keeping the money flowing to those who already have more.

It’s time for our leaders to remember who they’re working for.” 

FAMILIES AT RISK IN FEDERAL BUDGET DEBATE, ADVOCATES WARN

May8

 Advocates for immigrant families, health care, food security, and economic opportunity warned today that the federal budget debate in Congress threatens deep cuts to health care and social services for millions of Michigan residents in immigrant families. Spokespersons for the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center (MIRC), the Protecting Immigrant Families Coalition (PIF), Michigan Primary Care Association, Michigan League for Public Policy, and Food Bank Council of Michigan briefed Michigan journalists by teleconference.

“These cuts will impact immigrant families and communities across the state.” said Christine Sauvé, Policy, Engagement, and Communications Manager at the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center. “Immigrants are integral to Michigan’s social, cultural, and economic fabric and the proposed restrictions would hurt us all. We all benefit when more people have access to the care and support they need to thrive.”

“Policymakers need to understand that – in addition to the human consequences – these cuts will mean job losses, loss of needed services to keep folks well, and facility closures across our state, including areas already experiencing insufficient healthcare access,” said Jackie Chandler, Population Health Manager at the Michigan Primary Care Association.

“The Child Tax Credit and other anti-poverty measures drastically reduce child poverty, making for a more prosperous economic environment with lower public costs in the long term,” said Scott Preston, Senior Policy Analyst at the Michigan League for Public Policy. “Immigrants are important contributors to our state’s economy and the proposed cuts would simply make life harder for citizens who want to stay in Michigan and be part of our state’s future.”

“Denying SNAP to lawfully-present immigrants and U.S. citizens in immigrant families will drive up hunger across the state and undermine the economic stability of families, farms and other food producers, and neighborhood retailers across the state,” said Anna Almanza, Director of Public Policy & Government Relations, Food Bank Council of Michigan

“Congress should be looking for solutions to problems like unmet health care needs, hunger, and poverty, not making those problems worse,” said PIF Campaign Strategist Esther Reyes.

U.S. Senate Budget Plan Would Harm Millions of Michiganders and Deepen Wage Inequalities

Apr4

The Michigan League for Public Policy is strongly denouncing the United States Senate’s new budget plan, which is predicted to pass this weekend and would create harmful consequences for Michiganders. Monique Stanton, MLPP president & CEO states:

“The Senate’s new budget plan is downright dangerous, and if passed this weekend as planned, will set the stage for a damaging tax and budget bill. It delivers massive tax breaks to millionaires, billionaires, and large corporations — and covers the cost in part by slashing essential programs like Medicaid and SNAP. In Michigan alone, 2.6 million residents rely on Medicaid — including over 1 million children — and more than 1.4 million Michiganders rely on SNAP. These cuts would lead to higher health care and food costs for families, increased financial hardship, and millions potentially losing health coverage. 

Even with deep cuts, the tax breaks are so expensive that they will lead to a significant rise in the national deficit, increasing economic risks tied to unsustainable debt — all to benefit the wealthiest households.

It doesn’t have to be this way. There’s still time for Congress to change course. Lawmakers must honor their commitments to ease the burdens families face, not reshape the budget to serve those at the very top. A responsible plan would lower health care and grocery costs, expand the Child Tax Credit, and invest in working families — and ask corporations and the wealthy to pay their fair share through a more balanced tax policy.

Senate Republicans are using misleading tactics to obscure the truth about this budget. They’ve downplayed the cost of these tax cuts and hidden the full scope of planned reductions to Medicaid, food assistance, student loans and other critical programs. In reality, the budget would make college more expensive and take away essential supports from families the President once vowed to protect — all while delivering an average annual tax cut of $62,000 to households earning over $1 million, according to the Tax Policy Center.

The plan includes at least $5.3 trillion in tax breaks over the next nine years — $1.5 trillion more than the cost of extending the 2017 tax cuts — and that number could climb even higher with additional program cuts under consideration by the Senate Finance Committee.

What does that mean for Michigan? According to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, simply extending the 2017 tax cuts would give the richest 1% of Michiganders an average tax cut of $35,970 while the poorest 20%, who are already struggling to afford the basics, would receive an average tax cut of just $90. What’s worse is that we expect the plan to go beyond this — providing windfall tax breaks for wealthy Michiganders while making it harder for the rest of us to see a doctor, put food on our table and send our kids to school. 

It’s becoming clearer and clearer. Many in Congress are embracing an agenda that threatens public services and undermines democratic processes. Alongside the budget, Republicans are advancing executive actions that unlawfully withhold congressionally approved funding, politicize and weaken the civil service, and erode institutions like the Social Security Administration and the Treasury Department — putting the privacy and stability of millions at risk. On top of this, the administration is pushing new, unilateral tariffs that will raise everyday costs for working families by hundreds or even thousands of dollars — easily wiping out any modest tax relief they might receive.

This budget plan — like so much of the current agenda — is upside down. It breaks promises, deepens the already massive income gap, and puts the interests of the wealthy above the needs of the nation. The American people deserve a plan that builds shared prosperity — not one that leaves families behind.”