MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Area activists, healthcare professionals, and Morgantown area residents who could be affected by potential changes in Medicaid decided to voice their frustrations outside of the area office for U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito.
Representatives with the West Virginia Citizen Action Group (WV CAG), along with mental healthcare and drug rehabilitation professionals as well as current enrollees in Medicaid, were on hand along the Monongahela River Trail in Morgantown’s Wharf District, where they hosted a candlelight vigil in recognition of West Virginians who could be affected on a long-term basis as a result of the proposed adjustments. Close to one hundred people carried signs, made performative displays, and told their stories about how the changes could affect them and their loved ones.
“This is a really big issue,” said WV CAG Healthcare Organizer Mindy Salango. “We’ve seen a lot of turnout for other rallies and things that we’ve held, and I felt that people were going to come out and support their neighbors.”
Those who were on hand that spoke during the protest discussed how various adjustments to Medicaid programs could be passed as part of initial draft proposals. This included how a proposed institution of work requirements or potentially changing the federal share of Medicaid expansion costs, which currently is at a 90 percent coverage rate, which in turn has led state legislatures to consider plans to refuse what would be an estimated $160 million shift towards state costs. If that were to happen, according to those in attendance, people would inevitably lose varying levels of healthcare coverage, which in turn could affect lives.
“You’d be surprised at the number of people through the years that I have taken care of that were working and had a devastating injury,” said retired rehabilitation professional Cynthia Fox, who spoke to protesters Wednesday evening. “A young person with a stroke, or who has brain injuries or spinal cord injuries, they lose their insurance, and they lose a lot of other things; they lose income, and they could end up on Medicaid.”
Among the close to one hundred people in attendance were also healthcare professionals who are currently employed within the Mountain State that took part in the protest. This included doctors in fields related to psychiatry and rehabilitation, who were joined by social workers along with current Medicaid enrollees who varied from the recently retired to those who have recently married and are looking to have kids. With what has been confirmed by both Democrat and Republican legislatures to be at around 28 percent of low-income West Virginians currently dependent upon Medicaid, the professionals on hand say any changes short of expanding options or considering single-payer plans would be detrimental to West Virginians.
“I’m a mental health provider here in West Virginia, and almost the entire population I see are children on Medicaid,” said current mental health professional Alicia Dewitt, who also spoke during the protest. “These are children who have been through trauma, children who have suicidal ideation.”
As budget discussions continue on a federal level related to Medicaid spending, potential tax reductions, and the wide-ranging aspects of the United States national budget, the WV CAG intends to continue to protest at Senator Capito’s offices in both West Virginia and Washington, D.C. This will include plans to travel to the nation’s capital in the coming weeks, where they intend to protest outside the offices of not only Senator Capito but also the offices of Senator Jim Justice, U.S. Representative Riley Moore, and Representative Carol Miller. While nothing has been etched in stone and protests are seen across the country over federal cuts related to the United States Department of Health and Human Services, it appears that at least one organization plans to continue to voice their frustrations in the coming weeks.
“It’s not about profit, it’s about greed,” said Salango. “You can still make a profit and have a successful business, but who are you if you are just constantly taking from the most vulnerable?”