MADISON, Wis. – On a press call this morning, Senator Tammy Baldwin joined Wisconsin families and a healthcare provider to demand Republicans in Congress reverse the largest Medicaid cut in U.S. history and extend healthcare tax credits that expired at the end of 2025. Republicans in Congress voted to cut healthcare for 54,000 Wisconsinites to pay for tax breaks for billionaires, and Wisconsin families are already feeling the devastating impact.
“We need to roll back these Medicaid cuts. We need to give working families who get their health care through the Affordable Care Act a tax break so they can afford their insurance, and we need to fix our broken health care system. I’m at the table, and I’ll work with anyone to get this done for Wisconsin families,” said Senator Tammy Baldwin.
Joe, a Kenosha firefighter and constituent of Congressman Bryan Steil, shared how his family depends on Medicaid to afford care for his son who was diagnosed with a rare disorder in 2014. His son is susceptible to congenital heart defects and juvenile polyposis, requiring extensive ongoing treatment.
“The senator mentioned a constituent that was paying $1,300 a month just for premiums, not counting co-pays. That’s a mortgage. So now we’re paying a mortgage, and we’re paying additional costs similar to that in just our health insurance. It’s too much to bear,” said Joe. “I’ve seen a lot of inaction. Congress needs to take action and reverse those cuts immediately and restore health care for the Wisconsinites that are losing it. Our families can’t wait.”
Emma, a 26-year-old from Mount Pleasant and constituent of Congressman Bryan Steil, was an elite volleyball player before developing rare, incurable chronic conditions including dysautonomia, Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, and mast cell activation syndrome – conditions that thousands of others are now experiencing after COVID-19.
“In 2020, the Aging Disability Resource Center of Racine County estimated my medications would cost over $2 million a year. I’m on disability. I make $12,000 a year,” said Emma. “When Congressman Bryan Steil voted to cut Medicaid, he voted to take away the health care that is my lifeline. It literally keeps people like me alive, and it’s just shocking that someone would do such a thing.”
Kate from Tomah, whose 93-year-old mother is a constituent of Congressman Derrick Van Orden and depends on Medicaid for long-term care, shared her experience meeting with Van Orden to voice her concerns.
“He went even further as to write my mom a handwritten letter saying that he would never cut her well-deserved or earned benefits. And you know, I wanted to believe him. I wanted to trust him, but to be honest, I was not surprised when just a few months after he wrote that letter and after our meeting, he voted for the Republican tax law that included the largest Medicaid cut in U.S. history,” said Kate.
Dr. Abigail La Nou, an emergency and critical care physician from Chippewa Falls and constituent of Congressman Derrick Van Orden, spoke about seeing patients who depend on Medicaid coverage.
“Every day in the emergency department, in the critical care unit, I see people that depend on Medicaid for health care, and I don’t think many people realize how extensive it is. The seniors that we see, many of them depend on that to cover nursing home costs, and unfortunately, many people need to go to skilled nursing or rehab after a hospital stay,” said Dr. La Nou. “I see many children in the emergency department who are on Medicaid for chronic conditions, for income, working families who would absolutely go bankrupt without Medicaid coverage.”
