Press Call

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR THURSDAY, APRIL 13 AT 10 AM ET***

Washington, DC – On Thursday, April 13, 2023, at 10 AM ET, U.S. Representatives and Co-Chairs of the Medicaid Expansion Caucus will join Protect Our Care for a press conference to discuss the urgency for the remaining 10 non-expansion states to follow North Carolina’s lead and finish the job to extend coverage to the estimated 1.9 million Americans in the coverage gap. During the call, the speakers will discuss how expansion has never been more important as states face threats of major coverage losses due to the ongoing Medicaid unwinding. 

April marks the 5th annual Medicaid Awareness Month. A record 92 million Americans are covered by Medicaid, but extremists in Congress are seeking serious cuts to the program and proposing bureaucratic work reporting requirements. Meanwhile, protections put into place by Congress to keep people enrolled during the public health emergency expired on April 1. An estimated 15 million people may lose their coverage due to the unwinding, with those in non-expansion states being particularly vulnerable. 

PRESS CALL:

WHO:
U.S. Representative Steve Cohen (D-TN-09)
U.S. Representative Hank Johnson (D-GA-04)
U.S. Representative Don Davis (D-NC-01)
Brad Woodhouse, Protect Our Care

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference 

WHERE: Register for the Event Here.

WHEN: Thursday, April 13 at 10 AM ET

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR TUESDAY, APRIL 11 AT 12:30 PM ET***

Washington, DC – On Tuesday, April 11, 2023, at 12:30 PM ET, Democratic Women’s Caucus Communications Task Force Co-Chairs Rep. Gwen Moore (D-WI-04) and Rep. Shontel Brown (D-OH-11), and President of the National Partnership for Women & Families Jocelyn Frye will join Protect Our Care for a press conference to discuss the ways Medicaid helps women and children across the nation stay healthy. The speakers will talk about how Medicaid is a lifeline for families and provides affordable, quality health care to people from all backgrounds.

April marks the 5th annual Medicaid Awareness Month. A record 92 million Americans have enrolled in Medicaid. Adult women comprise an estimated 40 percent of those enrolled in Medicaid, and over half (54 percent) of children across the country are enrolled in Medicaid/CHIP. Read Protect Our Care’s fact sheet on how Medicaid helps women and children here. 

Medicaid Awareness Month comes as Republicans in Congress are seeking serious cuts to the program and proposing bureaucratic work reporting requirements while GOP leaders in 10 states have failed to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, blocking millions of families from affordable coverage. Protections put into place by Congress to keep people enrolled in Medicaid during the public health emergency expired on April 1. It is predicted that approximately 15 million people may lose their coverage due to the unwinding with those in non-expansion states being particularly vulnerable. President Biden and Democrats in Congress, on the other hand, are working to strengthen Medicaid for years to come.

PRESS CALL:

WHO:
U.S. Representative Gwen Moore (D-WI-04), Democratic Women’s Caucus Communications Task Force Co-Chair
U.S. Representative Shontel Brown (D-OH-11), Democratic Women’s Caucus Communications Task Force Co-Chair
Jocelyn Frye, President, National Partnership for Women & Families
Kristin Volchansky, patient storyteller from Pennsylvania
Anne Shoup, Protect Our Care

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference 

WHERE: Register for the Event Here.

WHEN: Tuesday, April 11 at 12:30 PM ET

Braidwood Decision Ends Free Lifesaving Preventive Health Care for 150 Million Americans

Washington, DC — Today, March 30, 2023 at 2:30 PM EDT, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network President Lisa Lacasse, National Partnership for Women & Families’ Sinsi Hernández-Cancio, American Public Health Association Executive Director Dr. Georges Benjamin, and Andrew Pincus will join Protect Our Care for a virtual press conference to discuss U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor’s devastating decision to strike down a major provision of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that requires no cost coverage of lifesaving preventive health care services. Today’s decision in Braidwood Management v. Becerra would end ACA’s guaranteed free access to essential preventive services. In 2020 alone, more than 150 million Americans benefited from these preventive services.  

Judge O’Connor invalidated all of the benefits covered under the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, including lifesaving breast cancer screenings, colorectal and other cancer screenings, anxiety and depression screenings for children and adults, heart disease screenings, intimate partner violence screenings, and access to PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis), which can reduce the chance of contracting HIV. The ruling applies nationwide. During the call, speakers will make clear that this decision is a tragedy for millions of Americans’ access to lifesaving health care services. 

PRESS CALL:

WHO:
Lisa Lacasse, President for American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network
Sinsi Hernández-Cancio, Vice President for health justice at National Partnership for Women & Families
Andrew Pincus, Visiting Lecturer in Law at Yale Law School and and experienced Supreme Court and appellate lawyer
Dr. Georges C. Benjamin, Executive Director, American Public Health Association
Leslie Dach, Chair of Protect Our Care

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference

WHERE: Register for the Event Here.

WHEN: Thursday, March 30, 2023 at 2:30 PM EDT

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR MONDAY, MARCH 27 AT 10:00 AM ET***

Washington, DC – On Monday, March 27, 2023, at 10 AM ET, U.S. Representatives Kathy Castor and Colin Allred will join Protect Our Care for a press conference to call on governors across the country to keep families in America covered as the requirement to keep people on Medicaid ends April 1. The speakers will talk about the responsibility governors have to use their authority and resources to ensure children and families counting on Medicaid do not lose coverage due to burdensome paperwork and bureaucratic red tape. 

Congress passed legislation at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic to protect access to Medicaid by ensuring no one could be disenrolled during the public health emergency. This provision has helped secure the lowest level of uninsured Americans ever. An estimated 15 million people could potentially lose coverage, disproportionately affecting people of color and children. It is especially important to keep families covered in all the states where leaders continue to reject Medicaid expansion, including Florida and Texas. The Biden-Harris administration has committed to expanding access to care and providing guidance to states to assess eligibility in a way that will minimize coverage losses, particularly for children, people of color, people with disabilities, and others who rely on the Medicaid program for their health care.

PRESS CALL:

WHO:
U.S. Representative Kathy Castor (D-FL-14)
U.S. Representative Colin Allred (D-TX-32)
Leslie Dach, Founder and Chair, Protect Our Care

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference 

WHERE: Register for the Event Here.

WHEN: Monday, March 27 at 10 AM ET

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR MONDAY, MARCH 20 AT 2:00 PM EST // 11 AM PST***

Washington, DC – On Monday, March 20, 2023 at 2 PM EST/11 AM PST, U.S. Representatives and Tri-Caucus Chairs Nanette Barragán, Judy Chu, and Steven Horsford, will join civil rights leaders and Protect Our Care for a press conference to release a letter by the Congressional Tri-Caucus to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) calling for state and federal action to keep families in America covered as Medicaid’s continuous coverage requirement ends. The Tri-Caucus letter is supported by Protect Our Care, Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum, Coalition on Human Needs, Families USA, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, NAACP, National Urban League, and UnidosUS.

Congress passed legislation at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic to protect access to Medicaid by ensuring no one could be disenrolled during the public health emergency. This provision, which has helped secure the lowest level of uninsured Americans ever, is set to expire on April 1. This would potentially result in an estimated 15 million people potentially losing coverage, disproportionately affecting people of color and children. The Biden-Harris administration has committed to expanding access to care and providing guidance to states to assess eligibility in a way that will minimize coverage losses, particularly for children, people of color, people with disabilities, and others who rely on the Medicaid program for their health care.

PRESS CALL:

WHO:
U.S. Representative Nanette Barragán (D-CA-44), Chair, Congressional Hispanic Caucus
U.S. Representative Judy Chu (D-CA-28), Chair, Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus
U.S. Representative Steven Horsford (D-NV-04), Chair, Congressional Black Caucus
Juliet K. Choi, President and CEO, Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum
Marc Morial, President and CEO, National Urban League
Janet Murguía, President and CEO, UnidosUS
Leslie Dach, Founder and Chair, Protect Our Care

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference 

WHERE: Register for the Event Here

WHEN: Monday, March 20 at 2 PM EST/11 AM PST

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR THURSDAY, MARCH 9 AT 12:15 PM ET***

Echoing President Biden’s Remarks, Speakers Will Call Out Republicans for Working to Rip Health Coverage Away from Millions of People

LANSING, MI – On Thursday, March 9, at 12:15 ET, U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow and health  care leaders will join Protect Our Care Michigan to discuss the GOP’s real threats to slash Medicaid and dismantle the Affordable Care Act (ACA). For months, Republicans have promised to use their House majority to defund Medicare and Medicaid, and repeal the Affordable Care Act and Inflation Reduction Act rather than make companies and the wealthy pay their fair share.

Recent press reports indicate that GOP lawmakers have been meeting with Russ Vought, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget under former President Trump, as they begin to draft a budget to use as part of their threat to tank the economy and default on the nation’s debt if President Biden doesn’t agree to slash health care and other programs. Vought’s plan would cut $2 trillion from Medicaid alone and repeal Medicaid expansion, which covers 20 million people. This is the latest in a long line of Republican attacks on Medicaid.

Speakers will describe how the Republican plan would be catastrophic for Michiganders and disproportionately impact children, rural communities, people with disabilities, and people of color. Speakers will also discuss new polling showing widespread support for Medicaid among voters, as well as significant opposition to cuts in Medicaid funding.

Learn more about the latest Republican attacks on health care here.

PRESS CALL:

WHO:
U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow
Dr. Farhan Bhatti, CEO and Medical Director of Care Free Medical
Eric Schneidewind, past AARP national president, Michigan senior on Medicare

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference

WHERE: Register to join the Zoom event (Registration required)

WHEN: Thursday, March 9 AT 12:15 PM ET

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR WEDNESDAY, MARCH 1 AT 12:00 PM ET***

Washington, DC — On Wednesday, March 1, 2023, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR), House Energy and Commerce Committee Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ-06), and Representatives Tony Cárdenas (D-CA-29), and Debbie Dingell (D-MI-06) will join Protect Our Care for a press call following President Biden’s speech on the GOP’s real threats to slash Medicaid and dismantle the Affordable Care Act (ACA). For months Republicans have openly stated their goal for their House majority – to gut health care programs to fund tax breaks for the wealthy. During the call, speakers will discuss how the GOP remains committed to ripping away protections for pre-existing conditions, raising premiums, and throwing millions off their coverage.

Recent press reports indicate that GOP lawmakers have been meeting with Russ Vought, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget under former President Trump, as they begin to draft a budget to use as part of their threat to tank the economy and default on the nation’s debt if President Biden doesn’t agree to slash health care and other programs. 

Vought’s plan would cut $2 trillion from Medicaid alone and repeal Medicaid expansion, which covers 20 million people. This is the latest in a long line of Republican attacks on Medicaid. The plan also makes extensive cuts to the Affordable Care Act, eliminates protections for pre-existing conditions, and removes the premium tax credits that make coverage affordable for 15 million Americans. Vought’s plan would be catastrophic for the American people and disproportionately impact children, rural Americans, and people of color.

Read more here.

PRESS CALL:

WHO:
U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR)
U.S. Representative Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ-06)
U.S. Representative Tony Cárdenas (D-CA-29)
U.S. Representative Debbie Dingell (D-MI-06)
Brad Woodhouse, Executive Director of Protect Our Care 

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference 

WHERE: Register for the Event Here

WHEN: Wednesday, March 1 at 12:00 PM ET

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 21 AT 11:30 AM ET***

Call Will Also Address Republican Efforts to Slash Medicare and Medicaid

Washington, DC — On Tuesday, February 21, 2023, U.S. House Assistant Democratic Leader James E. Clyburn (D-SC-06) and U.S. Representative Lucy McBath (D-GA-07) will join patient advocates and Protect Our Care for a press call to discuss the ongoing efforts to expand the Inflation Reduction Act’s insulin savings to every American. The event is part of Protect Our Care’s “Fortnight of Action” to showcase the Inflation Reduction Act’s $35 insulin cap that benefits more than three million seniors nationwide. Lowering insulin costs are especially important for people of color, who disproportionately suffer from diabetes and are more likely to skip, ration, or completely forgo insulin as a result of outrageous costs. Read more about the lifesaving policy here. 

Last year, Republicans in Congress blocked a provision that would have extended the cap to people with private insurance — once again putting Big Pharma’s profits over real people. Now, President Biden and Democrats in Congress are fighting to extend these savings to everyone. This would be a key step to ensuring access to the medicine an estimated 21 million patients need to thrive.

PRESS CALL:

WHO:
U.S. Representative James E. Clyburn (D-SC-06)
U.S. Representative Lucy McBath (D-GA-07)
Elise Oberdorfer-Douglas, Patient Storyteller
Leslie Dach, Chair of Protect Our Care 

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference 

WHERE: Register for the Event Here

WHEN: Tuesday, February 21 at 11:30 AM ET

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 21 AT 11:30 AM ET***

Call Will Also Address Republican Efforts to Slash Medicare and Medicaid

Washington, DC — On Tuesday, February 21, 2023, U.S. House Assistant Democratic Leader James E. Clyburn (D-SC-06) and U.S. Representative Lucy McBath (D-GA-07) will join patient advocates and Protect Our Care for a press call to discuss the ongoing efforts to expand the Inflation Reduction Act’s insulin savings to every American. The event is part of Protect Our Care’s “Fortnight of Action” to showcase the Inflation Reduction Act’s $35 insulin cap that benefits more than three million seniors nationwide. Lowering insulin costs are especially important for people of color, who disproportionately suffer from diabetes and are more likely to skip, ration, or completely forgo insulin as a result of outrageous costs. Read more about the lifesaving policy here. 

Last year, Republicans in Congress blocked a provision that would have extended the cap to people with private insurance — once again putting Big Pharma’s profits over real people. Now, President Biden and Democrats in Congress are fighting to extend these savings to everyone. This would be a key step to ensuring access to the medicine an estimated 21 million patients need to thrive.

PRESS CALL:

WHO:
U.S. Representative James E. Clyburn (D-SC-06)
U.S. Representative Lucy McBath (D-GA-07)
Reverend Leela Waller, Patient Storyteller
Leslie Dach, Chair of Protect Our Care 

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference 

WHERE: Register for the Event Here

WHEN: Tuesday, February 21 at 11:30 AM ET

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 16 AT 10:45 AM ET***

Lawmakers Have Long Promised to Rein in High Drug Prices, Lower Health Costs, and Expand Access — President Biden and Democrats Are Getting the Job Done.

LANSING, MI – On Thursday, Feb. 16, at 10:45 a.m. ET, Congressman Dan Kildee and policy advocates will join Protect Our Care Michigan to discuss how President Biden and Democrats in Congress have worked to pass historic health care measures, lower costs, and expand access to care in Michigan and across the country.  

This event comes after President Biden’s State of the Union address, where he celebrated the administration’s accomplishments and outlined further action to lower costs and improve care for people across the nation. Prior to the president’s address, Protect Our Care released its agenda for 2023, calling on Congress to keep up the momentum to lower health care costs, improve care, and advance health equity. 

In January, the Inflation Reduction Act’s lifesaving provision to cap insulin Medicare copays at $35 per month went into effect, benefiting more than 3 million seniors. Last year, Republicans in Congress blocked Congressman Kildee’s legislation which would have extended the cap to people with private insurance — putting Big Pharma’s profits over real people. Now, President Biden and Democrats in Congress are fighting to extend these savings to everyone. This would help an estimated 21 million patients afford this vital medication. 

PRESS CALL: 

WHO:
Dan Kildee, U.S. Congressman, Michigan’s Eighth District
Amber Bellazaire, Policy Analyst, Michigan League for Public Policy
Eric Schneidewind, Michigan Senior on Medicare 

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference 

WHEN: Wednesday, February 16, at 10:45 AM ET 

WHERE: Register to join the Zoom event (Registration required)