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China raises tariffs on U.S. to 125% as 'tit-for-tat' trade war escalates; Victory in federal court for northern ID grizzlies; MD's local libraries brace for federal funding cuts; MS residents' outcry prompts Social Security Admin. to reverse course on phone service cuts.

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Speaker Johnson says safety net programs will be "protected" in House budget. Secretary of State Rubio defends the administration's revoking of hundreds of student visas, and rural libraries could close as federal funding is cut.

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Trump's tariffs sow doubt and stress for America's farmers, rural Democrats want working class voters back in the fold, and a cancelled local food program for kids worries folks in Maine.

Medicaid cuts could hurt low-income Alaskans, damage health care system

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Wednesday, February 26, 2025   

Experts said Medicaid cuts proposed in next year's federal budget could hurt almost 250,000 Alaskans and threaten thousands of jobs in the state's health care industry.

Congressional Republicans are calling for $800 billion in reductions to the state-federal program providing health insurance to low-income families, children, seniors and people with disabilities.

Shannon Davenport, president of the Alaska Nurses Association, said Medicaid is the cornerstone of health care in a largely rural state like Alaska, and its loss could be "disastrous."

"We would have people going without health care, children going without preventative health care, from vaccines to checkups," Davenport pointed out. "Something as basic as 'I start out with a cold, but now I've got pneumonia and I have to be admitted to a hospital,' which could have been avoided if they were able to have their Medicaid care."

In Alaska, the federal government covers 52% of traditional Medicaid costs but pays for 90% of the state's Medicaid expansion costs under the Affordable Care Act. Davenport noted fewer Medicaid dollars could also mean fewer jobs in the state's health care industry.

Davenport reported Medicaid covers prenatal and postnatal care for pregnant women and funds more than 75% of nursing home care for Alaska's seniors. For some families, the lack of Medicaid coverage could turn a minor illness into a medical emergency.

"Whether or not someone can get the right medication, is scary for me being a nurse in health care, that I might not be able to provide my patient with the medication they need because they don't have the coverage," Davenport added. "I'm supposed to tell someone, 'I'm so sorry I can't give this to you.' And it can be a matter of life or death."

Davenport argued cuts to a program like Medicaid would have real-world consequences for many of Alaska's most vulnerable citizens, including natives and other people of color. She feels people need to speak up now before any changes are made.

"We're all going to be impacted," Davenport projected. "If we don't, as a nation, come together and use our voices and say, 'This is not OK,' then what does that leave us? Where is that going to leave us in a year from now, in five years from now, when our kids are grown-ups and trying to be responsible, sustainable adults?"


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