This morning, the U.S. Congressional House passed — by a single vote — a federal budget that cuts health care and food assistance Ohioans depend on.
The budget pays for tax cuts that most benefit the richest Americans by making the largest cuts in history to Medicaid and SNAP, alongside cuts to education and clean energy programs.
For Ohio families, this means:
- An estimated 400,000 people across the state losing health insurance through a combination of new Medicaid requirements and the choice not to extend premium tax credits that have made health coverage under Affordable Care Act plans more affordable.
- Plummeting funding for SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), a program that over 300,000 Ohio adults and children rely on to keep food on the table. Federal funding cuts would leave Ohio on the hook for at least $645 million a year in new state spending to keep SNAP benefits at current levels.
“Many in Ohio are already struggling to pay for basics like groceries and health care. Some of the same congressional leaders who promised to improve affordability just voted to make extreme cuts to the exact programs that help our neighbors make ends meet,” said Hannah Halbert, Executive Director of Policy Matters.
“The House budget sacrifices basic services that many Ohioans can’t do without to pay for tax cuts that most benefit the richest Americans,” said Halbert. “Our Senators need to hear that we reject this trade-off, loud and clear. Ohioans should contact Senators Moreno and Husted today — and again tomorrow, and the next day — urging them to reject any cuts to health care, food, and other services Ohioans depend on.”
Contact information for Sen. Bernie Moreno is available here.
As feds allege SNAP fraud, Ohio public employees step up