Video: Federally Funded Medi-Cal Health Insurance Protects the Community
One in five Americans and half of all children depend on federally funded health insurance – which is slated for a $1 trillion cut in the budget that President Trump signed into law on July 4
SANTA CLARA COUNTY, Calif. – A young couple whose prematurely born baby boy needed intensive lifesaving care. A teenage athlete whose life was shattered in a horrific head-on collision. A medical social worker who believes she would be dead or in prison if it wasn’t for substance use treatment.
Meet Gilberto, Marie, Sherrie, Jaden, and Mia – community members whose lives were changed because they had access to federally funded health insurance through Medi-Cal.
They are just a few faces among the 465,000 in Santa Clara County who rely on Medi-Cal. Across the nation, 1 in 5 Americans and half of all children depend on federally funded health insurance – which is being slashed by $1 trillion in the budget that was signed into law by President Trump on July 4 after approval of H.R. 1 by the GOP-led U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. It was opposed unanimously by Democrat lawmakers.
“Medicaid is not a line item. It is a lifeline,” said County Executive James R. Williams. “It supports critical health care services that benefit everyone in our community. This will make it harder for those most in need to access quality care, and it will create extraordinary challenges for our public hospital and health care system to continue to deliver the critical, life-saving care that everyone in our community depends on.”
Medicaid is the single largest source of revenue for Santa Clara Valley Healthcare, amounting to $1.9 billion each year for the County.
“Any reduction in that funding impacts the whole community,” said Paul Lorenz, CEO of Santa Clara Valley Healthcare. “Trauma services, emergency care – we are talking about services our entire community depends on, not just individuals on Medi-Cal.”
Lorenz said that to understand the importance of Medi-Cal, one needs to talk to individuals who directly depend on its services.
“We’re talking about life-saving medication, life-saving therapy that actually allows them to live a healthy and productive life in our community,” he said.
Hear stories from three Medi-Cal patients and their families, and learn why Medi-Cal benefits the entire community, regardless of who your insurance provider is.