Rep. Gary Friedmann Letter

Dear Neighbor,

This year, we’ve seen an unparalleled, relentless assault on access to affordable health care driven by Republicans in Washington.

The budget they passed over the summer, also known as the “Big, Beautiful Bill,” includes the largest cut to Medicaid in American history, along with sweeping changes to health insurance marketplace programs.

It’s projected to cost MaineCare, our state’s Medicaid program, an estimated $5 billion over a 10-year period – a huge funding gap they know the Legislature cannot fill on its own. The cuts will devastate our rural hospitals and make existing care deserts even worse.

On top of that, the Trump Administration and Congressional Republicans have shut down the federal government because they refuse to protect the Affordable Care Act’s enhanced premium tax credits. If these credits are allowed to expire on Dec. 31, thousands of hardworking Maine families will see their health insurance costs skyrocket.

Unfortunately, it’s not just Republicans in Washington who are attacking health care. Republicans in the Maine Legislature are, too.

This legislative session, Republicans attempted to limit MaineCare enrollment and add burdensome bureaucratic barriers to make it harder for eligible Mainers to get the health care they need, all while repeatedly trying to block legislation to pay the state’s bills to hospitals, nursing homes and pharmacies.

Democrats rejected these efforts, and instead we passed bills to increase funding for family planning services, boost access to financial assistance programs for medical care and protect consumers from the negative impacts of medical debt.

The “Big, Beautiful Bill” creates real challenges for Maine. But I believe access to health care should be a fundamental human right – and I won’t stop fighting to ensure that affordable, comprehensive, high-quality health care is within reach of every Maine family.

In this together,

Rep. Gary Friedmann

Serving House District 14

(207) 460-7362

Gary.Friedmann@legislature.maine.gov

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