Congress is preparing a major spending bill that will have drastic consequences for healthcare, food access, and immigrant rights across the nation. Using a special process called reconciliation, this final bill will be much easier to pass because it only requires a simple majority in the Senate and cannot be filibustered.  

The April 10th budget resolution outlined sweeping cuts over the next decade in order to fund mass deportations and tax cuts for billionaires and corporations. The House Energy and Commerce Committee is tasked with cutting $880 billion (over 10 years) from its budget, and Medicaid makes up the majority of its budget that can be cut. Medicaid provides healthcare for people of all ages with limited income, covering births, children’s healthcare, long-term care (home and nursing facilities), as well as healthcare for those living with a disability or mental illness. The House Agriculture Committee has been ordered to cut $230 billion (over 10 years) from its budget, with these cuts expected to come largely or entirely from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which provides essential food benefits for low-income households.

House committees began marking up bills during the first week of May, and concrete details on the cuts will emerge soon as Congress tries to pass the bill before Memorial Day. Whether they try to save money through work requirements, capping enrollment, or reducing federal matching dollars, we know that millions of eligible people who rely on Medicaid and SNAP will have a more difficult time staying enrolled, costs will be shifted to Washington state, and the health of our communities will suffer.  

• One in four Washingtonians (25%) relies on Medicaid for healthcare. [1]
• Most adults under 65 on Medicaid (92%) already work full/part-time or cannot work due to caregiving responsibilities, school, or a disability. [2]
• In 2024, 888,300 or 11% of Washingtonians used SNAP benefits, and more than 38% of those were in working families [3]
• SNAP helps 1 in 9 workers in Washington put food on the table [4]

We reject these cuts and call them out for what they are: immoral. Taking critical resources from the poor to provide tax cuts to the wealthy is absolutely against our shared values from many faith and wisdom traditions. Please join us in emailing your members of Congress and making our demands clear: no cuts to Medicaid or SNAP!