In a recently unearthed interview just months before he launched his campaign for Governor, Vivek Ramaswamy told the New York Times he believes that Medicaid and Medicare are “mistakes.”
As a doctor, I have to ask: are the 4 in 10 babies born in Ohio under Medicaid coverage a mistake? The 60% of seniors using Medicaid to fund their nursing home stays? What about the more than 55,000 veterans in Ohio who rely on Medicaid?
Vivek’s opinion that these programs are mistakes isn’t just the thoughts of an out of touch billionaire; it’s a dangerous look into how he would raise the cost of healthcare in Ohio. Medicaid and Medicare are lifelines for Ohioans across our state. These critical programs cover our kids, new mothers, veterans and seniors. 25% of Ohioans rely on Medicaid, and another 2.5 million rely on Medicare for care.
It covers the 40% of Ohioans on Medicaid who have a mental health diagnosis or deal with addiction, ensuring that they can get the treatment they need and get back to their families. Eliminating Medicaid would undermine the years of progress we’ve made in the fight to address our state’s opioid crisis. It doesn’t just hurt the individuals navigating addiction; one in four children in our state live with a parent with a substance use disorder.
For rural hospitals, Medicaid is the difference between staying open and being forced to close their doors. Rural hospitals are major employers, support local business, attract talent and support the tax base for services like our schools and police. The recent federal healthcare cuts have already put 11 of Ohio’s rural hospitals at risk of closure.
My opponent doesn’t understand the stakes. He can’t even be bothered to drive through rural Ohio, choosing to fly his private jet around our state. Under Vivek Ramaswamy’s leadership these hospitals would close, stripping care away from Ohio’s rural communities. Rural Ohioans are already forced to drive an hour and fifteen minutes to fill a child’s cavity, have a routine check-up or give birth. Ending Medicaid would make it nearly impossible for rural Ohioans to receive quality healthcare, much less emergency services.
Ohioans are already feeling the weight of rising costs, particularly in healthcare. We had the second highest drop in ACA enrollment this year because federal subsidies were allowed to expire. Almost 19% of Ohioans with ACA coverage have already dropped their insurance because their premiums are skyrocketing. One woman, a former healthcare worker, told me that her premium tripled. Her deductible went from $500 to $7,000 this year.
This isn’t a matter of cutting back at the grocery store or pinching pennies; it’s catastrophic. I am hearing from Ohioans across the state that their health insurance is now thousands of dollars a month. Working families will be forced to go off their health insurance altogether. When people are uninsured, all of our healthcare costs go up. Folks are skipping doses to stretch out their expensive prescriptions or forgoing care until it’s too late.
My number one priority as governor is to make our state a place where everyone can get ahead. As governor, I will alleviate medical debt, use the power of the state to reduce prescription drug costs, hold health insurance companies accountable, and crack down on surprise billing.
This isn’t about party or politics; Governor Kasich expanded Medicaid because it was the smart thing to do. This is about extreme wealth, power and ideology against the rest of us. We cannot allow an out of touch billionaire to destroy our rural hospitals, strip health coverage from our most vulnerable, and take our state backwards.
When it comes to Medicaid and Medicare, the real mistake would be giving control over such critical lifelines to someone so out of touch with the lives of everyday Ohioans. It’s time to build an Ohio where everyone has the opportunity to reach our full potential.
Ohioans are ready for a change.
Amy Acton is running to be Ohio governor. The Democrat is a doctor and public health expert who has worked at Columbus Children’s Hospital, Ohio State University, the Columbus Foundation and served as the director of the Ohio Department of Health under Gov. Mike DeWine.
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