Political Quotes

“Mr. President, last week, hospital leaders from every corner of my State of Illinois came to Washington. What was the reason for the trip? The debate in Washington about the future of Medicaid. Each and every one of them, from the city of Chicago through the most rural areas in the State, was concerned about the plans by the Republicans in Congress to change the funding for Medicaid. From the South Side of Chicago to Macomb in West Central Illinois, as well as Rockford, 20 miles from the Wisconsin border, and Carbondale, all the way downstate, they came to see me. These are small, critical access hospitals in rural areas, the safety net hospitals treating the poorest patients and the large teaching hospitals in downtown Chicago. They are all focused on Medicaid. All of them told me the Medicaid cuts that Republicans have put on the table would be devastating to their hospitals in every corner of my State--devastating to the doctors and nurses that they employ and especially hurtful to the patients and their families. One told me that it is the only hospital in a 60-mile radius delivering babies. If Republican plans to cut Medicaid go through, this life-or-death care could be out of reach for pregnant mothers. Another safety net hospital told me they might have to close their doors altogether if the Medicaid cuts happen. Why? Why would Republicans in Congress even want to jeopardize healthcare and ring alarm bells in hospitals across America?…”