Policies should help, not hurt, seniors

Gov. David Ige’s agenda, “Engineering Hawaii’s Future” calls for caring for our kupuna and cherishing them for all that they have given us. “We owe them our gratitude and will demonstrate that with action,” promised the governor.

Unfortunately, the federal administration and Congress are clearly not demonstrating these values.

On July 13, the U.S. Senate released its latest health care bill designed to eliminate much of the Affordable Care Act. It maintains deep cuts to Medicaid, tax relief for America’s most wealthy, and now allows insurers to offer cheaper health care plans with fewer benefits without “Obamacare” mandates. This proposal is worse than the previous version that was opposed by the American Medical Association, AARP, the American Federation of Government Employees and the Catholic Health Association, to name a few.

This bill has yet to be reviewed by the bipartisan Congressional Budget Office, but little change is projected. Previous projections included 24.7 million more uninsured people by 2020; federal funding for Medicaid, premium tax credits, and cost-sharing reductions would be $140.4 billion lower in 2022, and state Medicaid spending would increase by $565 million.

U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono said the legislation would have a “devastating impact” on all Americans but especially older adults. She goes on to state that the bill “lacks heart” by leaving out those who are poorer, older and sicker.

This bill breaks the moral obligation to care for those most in need. It seeks to concentrate more wealth in the upper-income brackets and burden the middle class with tax breaks for the wealthy.

AARP calls the bill an Age Tax because it slashes taxes on the wealthy and big business, reduces federal funding for Medicaid and eliminates the Medicaid expansion provision under the ACA, limits tax credits to help people purchase insurance, and allows selling plans without basic health benefits like maternity care, hospitalization and mental health treatments. This is not Better Care — this is No Care.

Moreover, cuts in the president’s budget will affect seniors directly. This includes program to help seniors pay for their heat in winter and insulate their homes, and another that assists low-income seniors with job training and legal assistance.

The Meals on Wheels program would be doubly affected. Funding through the Community Development Block Grants for meals is small but significant. Most of the funding comes through the Department of Health and Human Services’ Community Living monies that Republicans insist won’t be cut, but a presidential proposal to slash the DHHS budget by 18 percent will clearly affect these programs.

Medicaid’s $800 billion cut by 2026 severely limits access to medical care, personal assistance and nursing home care. This shifts burdens to the states. Wives, daughters and daughters-in-law — the nation’s primary caregivers of older adults — will directly feel these cuts as services dry up. In short, states like ours will be forced to reduce eligibility, benefits or cut payments to providers. Additionally, cuts of more than $58 billion from Medicare reserves for hospital care are proposed.

President Donald Trump’s proposed $6.2 trillion tax cuts increase the national debt by $7 trillion over the next decade. The effect on senior and disabled populations will be devastating. Older adults and others will be left on their own and their families’ resources. Funds for care are already inadequate, and further cuts will be disastrous.

Congressional members opposing these cuts are calling on citizens across the country to let their voices in opposition be heard. Where do our priorities lie? And, ultimately, what kind of nation do we want to be?

Marilyn Seely and Dr. Colette Browne are members of the state Policy Advisory Board for Elder Affairs (PABEA).