Thank you, Sen. Hillary Clinton!


Received this response from Sen. Hillary Clinton, New York's illustrious junior senator, regarding my e-mail about supporting the Smith-Bingaman Amendment to stop the Republicans' proposed $15 billion cut in Medicaid funds. Ahh, Hilary...if only you were president! Of course this is only a form letter, but at least it's on the right side!

The letter from Sen. Clinton....

March 15, 2005

Dear Dr. NeSmith:

Thank you for your email. I pledge to fight the $15 billion cut in Medicaid funding proposed by the Republican Congressional majority in the budget resolution to be considered by the Senate this week. The cut would hit New York especially hard, cutting Medicaid funding by almost $2 billion.

While I believe wholeheartedly that we need to return to fiscal discipline and reduce the unprecedented deficits we are running, slashing Medicaid funding is not an answer to getting our fiscal house in order. It is unacceptable that the cost of balancing the budget will be borne by our most vulnerable Americans.

I am co-sponsoring an amendment with Senator Gordon Smith and Senator Jeff Bingaman to restore the cuts and create a bipartisan commission to recommend how to improve service delivery and quality in the Medicaid program in a way that is cost-effective.

New York's Medicaid program provides insurance to 4.1 million New Yorkers, including 1.7 million children, 1.4 million adults and 1 million elderly and disabled beneficiaries. A $2 billion cut would severely affect the services that these New Yorkers receive. For many of them, Medicaid is their last resort. The Medicaid cuts would hit rural areas particularly hard. Nearly one in four residents of rural areas is uninsured, compared to less than one in five of those living in urban areas. Nearly 16 percent of people who live in rural areas have Medicaid coverage - compared with about 10 percent of people in urban areas. Medicaid covers more than one in four children in rural areas. 27 percent of children in rural areas are enrolled in Medicaid, compared with less than 19 percent of children in urban areas.

We all agree that Medicaid reform is needed to help control costs and improve the efficiency of the program, but we need the right diagnosis and the right prescription for Medicaid. Making drastic cuts without addressing any of the underlying issues facing the program is not a solution to controlling costs. The cuts will only serve to shift the financial burden to states that will be forced to cut people from the program and trim back critically-needed benefits.

The New Yorkers who will be cut from the Medicaid rolls will still need health care, placing a burden on already stretched emergency rooms. The people of New York cannot afford to assume an even greater financial burden and I cannot stand by while this Congress puts in place arbitrary budget cuts that do irreparable harm to those who need our help the most. Therefore, I am going to fight this week to protect the future of our Medicaid program and start laying the groundwork for real reform.

Sincerely yours, Hillary Rodham Clinton


Posted: Tue - March 15, 2005 at 07:23 PM          

©