[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 38 (Wednesday, February 26, 2025)]
[House]
[Page H842]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                MEDICAID

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Michigan (Ms. Tlaib) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, Republicans are ramming through $4.5 trillion 
in tax cuts for billionaires and corporations. Look it up, Mr. Speaker. 
We are not making it up. So when I hear people say that is not what is 
happening when it is very evident, when Republicans are cutting $880 
billion, specifically in a committee that works on Medicaid, where do 
people think it is going to come from?
  For this Chamber to be able to pay for the cuts for the billionaires 
and powerful corporations, they are literally ripping healthcare away 
from millions of our families. Nearly 80 million people across the 
country rely on Medicaid and the children's health insurance program 
for access to healthcare.
  Medicaid is a program that provides prenatal care for expectant 
mothers, vaccinations for our children, and treatments for chronic 
conditions. It is a program that ensures that people don't have to 
choose between paying for their medication and putting food on the 
table.
  We all know our healthcare system is broken. It is inhumane. They 
can't do it alone.
  For those who rely on Medicaid, it is not just a service, Mr. 
Speaker. It is the difference between life and death. Right now, the 
future of Medicaid is under threat. It is clear as day when Republicans 
cut $880 billion.
  Under the budget that many of my colleagues passed last night, more 
than 250,000 people alone in my own district will be impacted. Mr. 
Speaker, 2.6 million across the State of Michigan will be impacted.
  These are not just numbers. They are our neighbors, our friends, our 
families, and parents who have special needs children. They depend on 
Medicaid for treatment and medication that is life or death, for health 
services they simply cannot afford elsewhere because we have sick care 
in our country, and we haven't had the courage to take on the industry.
  Among them, of course, are thousands and thousands of children. I 
know seniors and people with disabilities will be at the top of being 
directly impacted.
  Medicaid, Mr. Speaker, is the primary source for long-term care in 
our country. Long-term care in our country depends on Medicaid funding.

                              {time}  1030

  In my district alone, I have 22,000 seniors above the age of 65 who 
rely on it. Again, many of them rely on the necessary care and services 
because of Medicare, to live in dignity in their later years.
  Without Medicaid, our seniors could be forced to live without 
healthcare protections at the moment they need them the most.
  Make no mistake: Republicans want to give away trillions of dollars 
to the richest people in the world. My colleagues on the other side of 
the aisle want to pay for it by risking the lives of children and 
seniors. The majority is fully aware of what the impact is in their own 
communities, but my Republican colleagues did it anyway because the 
majority is convincing themselves that it is not happening and it is 
not going to happen.
  We will see. Remember those words when Republicans said it wasn't in 
there. We will see what the impact will be on our families.
  Please, to all our residents across the country: Raise your voices 
and fight. Fight for our families. Share your stories. We must continue 
to demand that healthcare is a right in our country and not a 
privilege. We will not allow them to fund tax cuts for billionaires, 
who can afford healthcare, by stripping away healthcare for our most 
vulnerable.


                            Federal Workers

  Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, we are not an experiment for Elon Musk to 
play with. We are not. The Trump administration's ongoing attacks on 
the Federal workforce is out of control. It is chaotic. It is harmful.
  Mr. Speaker, two children froze to death in the city I grew up in 
because they couldn't access housing resources. They kept calling. At 
that moment, though, we were letting go of the HUD workers who oversaw 
compliance of the Detroit Housing Commission.
  I see that, within the Dingell VA Medical Center in Detroit, 28 
veteran workers, some who cleaned the surgical equipment, were fired 
yesterday. What happens?
  Cuts to our Federal workforce have real-life impacts. Dozens of 
workers have just been fired, not only at the Dingell VA Medical 
Center, but with our HUD programs, FEMA, EPA, you name it.
  This administration is sending a message that they couldn't care less 
about not only our veterans, but the fact that we have a right to 
breathe clean air and we have a right to be protected by those who 
abuse their power.
  What the administration is doing is so incredibly harmful that they 
keep reversing their decisions, again creating this kind of chaos that 
is creating fear among our families and impacting their services.
  Mr. Speaker, these unaccountable billionaires are coming after all of 
our Federal workers, and it is an important reminder that it is not 
just a worker, but that these are individuals. Behind every single 
worker is a Federal program that helps our families.

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