I was zip tied and arrested for Medicaid

Join me in calling for basic care and supports we all need to survive

Dear friends, family and community,

I was one of the more than 33 people who raised our voices at the Russell Senate building this past Wednesday calling for No Cuts to Medicaid or SNAP and a NO vote on the reconciliation bill. As I type this message Senators are debating the bill, some are even trying to make the cuts deeper. It’s true we were zip tied and arrested before we were able to tell our stories or share our message. I’m disabled. Many of friends and are wheelchair users. If you were upset when you saw the videos or images of police arresting seniors and disabled people, I am begging you to be even more upset about this bill. If passed, people will suffer. People will die. It will hit those who already have the least the hardest. Please write and call your Senators and Representatives. Tell your friends, neighbors and co-workers to do the same. Learn more about cuts to Medicaid. Take action, ask Congress not to cut Medicaid or SNAP.

If passed this bill would lead to millions of people losing access to their health insurance and basic food assistance. Many people with disabilities will lose access to supports they need to remain in the community. My friends who I consider my family, who support me so I can continue living, will lose care hours. I have already had friends die when they lost their hours.

I’ve relied on Medicaid in the past, when I was between jobs. I was able to receive lifesaving care for a serious infection that required weeks of hospitalization. If I hadn’t had access to the treatment paid for by Medicaid I would not have been able to return to work.

I am a federal policy analyst and advocate. I have read the text. I have shared my story in lobby visits with Hill offices. I can provide facts and figures all day long, share stories of other disabled people who need Medicaid to live and are terrified and angry, and I can point you to others who are more expert.

There have been several versions of this reconciliation bill (also called the tax cut bill, the budget bill, or the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’) and it will likely change overnight and this week. Versions have included cuts to gender affirming care for transgender people, youth and adults, who need that care to survive. I have identified as non-binary for many years. The transgender/non-binary community is my community. The bill cuts funding to planned parenthood. I used their healthcare services often when I was younger. The bill has aimed to cut healthcare for immigrants, and penalize states (and DC) that use their money to provide care. Healthcare should and must be a human right for all people. The list of harmful provisions in the bill is endless and breaks my heart. I’m not an actor. I wasn’t paid to protest. No one is lying to me except the politicians who are saying this bill won’t harm disabled people. Please contact your members of Congress. Please help us kill this bill.

Thank you to every single person who has advocated for Medicaid and access to care this year, and to the activists who represented with their whole hearts and bodies the last few weeks. Follow and support the incredible people at National ADAPT (check out their great footage on Facebook), Popular Democracy, and the Debt Collective. In love and solidarity.

Update: The Senate narrowly passed the bill on Tuesday, July 1st with a 50/50 vote and JD Vance breaking the tie. But the fight is not over! Please contact your Representatives and tell them not to vote for the H.R.1 Senate Amendment.