Tag: Medicaid

American Bridge Statement on Kelly Ayotte’s Disastrous Debate

Statement from Jessica Mackler, president, American Bridge, on Senator Kelly Ayotte’s disastrous debate this morning:

“Kelly Ayotte continues to prove that she supports nearly all of the conservative policies of Donald Trump and her special interest billionaire backers, the Koch brothers. Whether it’s taking away health care for thousands of Granite Staters by repealing the Medicaid expansion or cutting Social Security and seniors’ benefits, Ayotte won’t stand up to Donald Trump – she’d be a rubber stamp for his extreme and dangerous agenda.”

Read more after the jump.

Sen. Ayotte Will Vote To Slash Life-Saving Substance Abuse Funding

Today, Senator Kelly Ayotte said she will vote with Senate Republicans to repeal Medicaid expansion and defund Planned Parenthood, taking away healthcare coverage from 40,000 Granite Staters and denying New Hampshire women access to important health procedures such as cancer screenings.

Here’s what Kelly Ayotte wants to take from New Hampshire families:

Crucial substance abuse treatment is provided across New Hampshire and the country through Medicaid expansion. The Associated Press reports, “Between September 2014 and March 2015, roughly 1,800 people insured by Medicaid expansion accessed substance abuse services.”
Nearly 13,000 New Hampshire women rely on health services provided by Planned Parenthood at New Hampshire’s 5 centers.

“Kelly Ayotte’s vote to repeal Medicaid expansion is a vote to end funding for life-saving substance abuse counseling and treatment programs while simultaneously attacking women’s access to quality health care through Planned Parenthood. This another example of Kelly Ayotte’s extreme partisanship that hurts the Granite State but woos billionaire donors like the Koch brothers who […]

Read more after the jump.

Jeb Bush: “Repeal And Replace” — And Privatize Medicaid

Jeb Bush today committed himself to the tried-and-failed GOP promise to “repeal and replace” the Affordable Care Act. What would that look like? A reversal of the ACA’s expansion of quality, affordable health care access for millions of Americans. And an abandonment of those afflicted with pre-existing conditions who haven’t maintained continuous coverage, leaving them at the mercy of insurance companies.

Jeb throws around rhetoric about reversing the healthcare law to promote “choice,” “transparency,” and “affordability.” But there’s no substance to it. Jeb talks up his record in Florida, but there’s nothing to be proud of there, either. Bush has never had to go on Medicaid — but he did try to privatize it as governor. And Jeb’s callous dismissal of the program’s importance and efficacy this morning telegraphs that he’s back for more.

In 2005, Bush signed into law a troubled privatization pilot program that required Medicaid beneficiaries to get insurance through private […]

Read more after the jump.

MEMO: Congratulations to Koch-crony Joni

To: Interested Parties
From: Brad Woodhouse, President of American Bridge 21st Century
Re: Congratulations to Koch-crony Joni
Date: Wednesday, June 4, 2014

Congratulations to Joni Ernst. Last night she captured the Tea Party Senate nomination in Iowa, and all she had to do was oppose the minimum wage, “philosophically” oppose renewable fuel standards, and flatter the billionaire, out-of-state Koch brothers.

Ernst faced a slew of conservative candidates in the Republican primary, but ultimately, her extreme record prevailed. You can’t question her Tea Party bona fides–in addition to opposing a federal minimum wage altogether, she thinks shifting a greater tax burden onto the middle class is “a great way to go.” She has made the case for privatizing Social Security, supported Paul Ryan’s budget to gut Medicaid and voucherize Medicare, and called for the elimination of Renewable Fuel Standards along with all other taxpayer subsidies. Her position on every one of those issues is in lockstep with the Koch agenda, and she even co-sponsored a personhood amendment, which would make some forms of contraception illegal and take away a woman’s right-to-choose even in the case of rape or incest. What more could a Tea Partier ask for?

Now, general election voters in Iowa can enjoy five months of getting to know Koch-crony Joni and her anti-middle class agenda.

Read more after the jump.

What WASN’T In Rick Scott’s Budget Speaks Volumes

Rick Scott signed his record-breaking budget today, packed with taxpayer handouts to special interests. But perhaps what is even worse than what’s in his budget is what isn’t.

The Scott budget did nothing to increase Florida’s minimum wage and give a raise to hardworking Florida families trying to get by. Not surprising, considering even the thought of raising the minimum wage makes Rick Scott cringe. His budget did nothing to expand Medicaid, as over 750,000 Floridians, including 41,000 veterans, continue to be denied health care. And his budget did nothing to guarantee equal pay for women in the Sunshine State.

Budgets are an embodiment of priorities, and Rick Scott’s priorities are clear: Special interests first. Florida last. Check out the graphics below:

ScottBudgetEqualPay
ScottBudgetMedicaid
ScottBudgetMinWage

Read more after the jump.

Rick Scott’s 2014 Budget: A Textbook Case Of Election Year Pandering

As Governor Rick Scott delivers his 2014-2015 budget address, Floridians would do well to see Scott’s budget for what it is: A textbook case of election year pandering. While Scott’s budget plans included hundreds of millions of dollars in vague tax breaks for special interests and dramatic cuts to various revenue sources, the Tea Party governor has also discovered an election year infatuation with spending on Everglades reconstruction, child welfare, and teacher pay raises. Scott’s predilection for election year pandering is nothing new, but the extent of it in his latest budget proposal is staggering.

Scott Has A History Of Election Year Pandering (VIDEO). According to a news segment highlighting clips of Governor Rick Scott, Scott has a history of election-year pandering. In the clip, a FOX reporter states of Scott: “He’s the Tea Party Republican who slashed school funding then raised it as he prepared for re-election, after he tied teacher pay to performance, before giving out raises regardless of performance.”

Read more after the jump.

VIDEO: Rick Scott Turns His Back on Medicaid Questions, Florida Families

The failure of Gov. Rick Scott and Florida Republicans to expand Medicaid as provisioned under the Affordable Care Act has subjected hundreds of thousands of low-income Floridians to uncertainty over their access to affordable health insurance. According to the Tampa Bay Times, these are families too poor to qualify for federal subsidies, yet can’t qualify for Florida’s Medicaid program, “one of the stingiest in the nation.”

Read more after the jump.

We told you: Steve Lonegan is the face of the “new” GOP

Just over two months ago, on the night Steve Lonegan won the Republican nomination, American Bridge sent the memo below arguing that Lonegan’s brand of extremism was perfectly in line with the “new” & “rebranded” Republican Party.

If Washington Republicans’ reckless and embarrassing behavior over the past three weeks weren’t proof enough, take a look at what RNC Chairman Reince Priebus said at a Lonegan campaign rally just last night (VIDEO HERE).

“I’ll tell you what. Steve’s been able to do something that we need a lot more of in this party. And that’s unify our party, bring our party together. The Tea Party, the Republican Party, all in this together.”

— Reince Priebus, RNC Chairman

What Mr. Priebus doesn’t seem to understand is that the Republicans’ problem isn’t a lack of unity with the Tea Party. This month’s shutdown fiasco proves the GOP’s problem is, in fact, its obedience to the Tea Party.

Read more after the jump.

VIDEO: Christie & Lonegan: We “believe in so many of the same things”

During his endorsement event on Tuesday, Gov. Chris Christie heaped praise on New Jersey Republican Senate candidate Steve Lonegan. “I am proud to have him as our candidate for the United States Senate,” Christie said. “Steve and I have believed and still believe in so many of the same things.”

So what exactly was Christie endorsing? Here’s American Bridge’s newest video: