In 2019, I was rushed to the hospital and waited at least four hours in the emergency room before being told that I needed emergency surgery. They found a cyst on my ovary that was causing me excruciating pain. In moments like this — discomfort, confusion, fear and pain — the last thing anyone should worry about is how they will pay for the care they need. It was only because of Medicaid that I could get the care I needed. But if the massive Medicaid cuts Congress is currently considering go into effect, hospitals, clinics, and elder care facilities across North Carolina could close.
I live in Rockingham where the population is less than 10,000. Getting emergency care or specialized appointments is hard enough already if you don’t live in a big city. So it makes me confused and angry that any politician would support a bill that doctors and hospitals have said will make care harder to get. But that’s exactly what’s being considered right now.
Finances are already tight. With tariffs now raising prices in North Carolina and across the country, I’m worried about the economy and my budget. For the past decade, I have worked as a property manager at a senior citizen apartment complex. I also work on the side at delivery jobs like Uber to make ends meet. I also help take care of my mom, who had a stroke. Everything from groceries to car payments and insurance makes the cost of living unaffordable. And now politicians in Washington want to make health care more expensive too? That’s heartless.
Senators Thom Tillis and Ted Budd and Representative Addison McDowell have a responsibility to stand up for North Carolinians like me. More than 3 million people in North Carolina — nearly 1 in 4 — rely on Medicaid. And nearly half of North Carolinians on Medicaid are kids. Rep. McDowell’s support for the recently-passed House budget bill that includes Medicaid cuts will have devastating consequences for millions of families here.
It’s disheartening that people like me can work day in and day out for decades, but those in power can take away the programs we rely upon with the stroke of a pen, seemingly with no remorse. People with Medicaid are not lazy or looking for handouts. We’re workers, caregivers, children, seniors, and people with disabilities. We are your neighbors, your coworkers, and your family members. We are North Carolina. We are America.
Cutting Medicaid isn’t just bad policy. It’s cruel. It tells people like me that our lives, our health, our work, and our families don’t matter. But we do. And we deserve healthcare. Without Medicaid, the next medical emergency my family faces could destroy us. Medicaid gives families like mine the breathing room to survive and recover, not just from illness, but from the crushing financial pressures that come with it. It is a basic necessity, not a luxury.
