Just Say No to Reckless Medicaid Cuts

Letter in Support of the Smith-Bingaman Amendment (3/14/05) Support the Bazelon Center. Your tax-deductible donation helps the Bazelon Center keep you informed on important developments in mental health law and policy. Not a Subscriber? Sign up now to receive action alerts and updates from the Bazelon Center. Syndicate Our Alerts. With our new RSS (Real Simple Syndication) feeds, you can receive instant notification of new alerts, updates, news releases and publications on our website. If you have your own website, you can also automatically post links to new resources from the Bazelon Center on your website. Find out more...

(March 15, 2005)—The Bazelon Center urgently needs your help to block indiscriminate and irresponsible cuts to the Medicaid program—the nation’s single most significant source of financing for mental health services.

This week, the Senate and House of Representatives are both expected to vote on budget resolutions making drastic cuts in Medicaid. The House budget resolution would slash approximately $20 billion; the Senate’s calls for $15 billion in cuts. Such cuts could harm tens of thousands of people with mental illnesses and their families who rely on Medicaid to access needed services.

If Congress approves cuts of that magnitude, funding for Medicaid case management will likely be slashed. The President’s proposed budget specifically identifies targeted case management services as one area for Medicaid cost reductions. Cuts in the House and Senate budget resolutions would be even more severe.

Targeted case management is an important community-based Medicaid service for children who require wraparound services to help them avoid school failure, contact with juvenile justice authorities and other adverse outcomes. For adults, it is equally vital in linking them to a range of critical support services, such as housing and employment.

Furthermore, reductions in the number of people eligible and in services covered by the federal government would almost certainly be needed to meet targets in the House and Senate budget resolutions.

Your immediate action is needed to stop these reckless cuts.

Take action Now!

In an effort to protect Medicaid from arbitrary cuts, Senators Gordon Smith (R-OR) and Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) plan to offer an amendment on the Senate floor to strike the cuts and create a bipartisan Medicaid commission to review the program and make recommendations for more thoughtful reforms. The Senators may offer this amendment as early as later today or tomorrow.

Call the Capitol switchboard at 202-224-3121 to be connected to your Senators* and urge them to:

1) Oppose cuts to Medicaid in the budget resolutions and

2) Support the modest Smith-Bingaman amendment to strike the cuts and establish a Medicaid Commission.

Also, call the Capitol switchboard at 202-224-3121 to be connected to your Representative* to urge them to oppose cuts to Medicaid in the House budget resolution.

*Not sure who represents you? Visit http://www.congress.org to find out.

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