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Maggie Sanchez is a Medicaid beneficiary, a mother of a child with disabilities, and a caregiver for a loved one living with severe mental illness. When she talks about what proposed federal Medicaid cuts would mean, she is not speaking theoretically.
Kathleen Downes is 32 years old and lives on Long Island where she works as a social worker and a board-certified patient advocate. Kathleen was born with cerebral palsy, a lifelong physical disability that affects all four limbs and her motor functions. She uses a wheelchair and needs assistance with every activity of daily living, including bathing, dressing and eating. Medicaid makes it possible for her to live in her community, not in an institution.
Hannah Bink never expected to become a care coordinator, benefits navigator, and family mediator all at once. But as her grandparents’ health declined, that is exactly what she became.
Nan Macklin is a Community Health Worker in the Bootheel region of Missouri, serving families who rely on Medicaid and Medicare. She works with seniors and small children in one of the poorest counties in the state. Nan explained that between 80-90% of the patients she serves rely on some form of state assistance. Her connection to Medicaid is personal as well as professional. As a single mother, she utilized Medicaid for her daughter's health care.
Dariya Walker is a high school student in Florissant, Missouri. Dariya and her family use Medicaid to access health care services, and she appreciates the peace of mind that having coverage gives her and her family.
Tina Roath is a 54-year-old woman with five children living in Kansas City, Missouri. She depends on Medicaid to help cover the care she needs. Though not her first time using the program — she previously relied on it for secondary coverage during her pregnancies — she now depends on it to manage a recently developed disability.
After two heart transplants and ongoing health complications, Andrea Martin relies on Medicaid for life-sustaining medications, specialist care, and mental health support. Any cuts to her coverage would be devastating — not just for her survival, but for her two sons and the disabled community that depends on these essential services.
It took years for Heidi Pomerleau to get the health coverage they need to manage their permanent disability. Now covered by Medicaid and Medicare, Heidi lives in constant fear that they will lose access to care if the programs are cut. Now Heidi fights to help other people get insurance coverage through Medicaid or the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
Joyce Clark Turner is currently living in Salt Lake City, Utah and training at the University of Utah to be an advocate for those with mental health challenges. She has worked multiple careers throughout her life and has experience navigating the health care system as both an employer and an employee. Along with this, she was on Medicaid while recovering from an alcohol use disorder.
Christian Peoples lives in St. Louis, Missouri, with her two children, both of whom have been diagnosed with autism. All three of them rely on Medicaid to access health care coverage, which has been an immense help through tough times.