FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 9, 2025
Contact: Kirstin Snow, Communications Director, snow@pennpolicy.org
RELEASE: Pennsylvania Policy Center, Pennsylvanians Together Campaign, Action Together NEPA, Labor, Partners Hold Community Conversation: Healthcare, Tax Changes, & Impacts on PA Working Families
Luzerne County, PA—Last evening, the Pennsylvania Policy Center, the statewide affiliate of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, and its action arm, Pennsylvanians Together, in partnership with Action Together NEPA, held a Community Conversation at the UFCW 1776 Union Hall in Jenkins Township, PA.
The event focused on the proposed federal cuts to Medicaid, SNAP, and other critical programs that could be addressed in the federal reconciliation bill as soon as this month. These cuts pose a serious threat to Pennsylvania and our state budget potentially creating a multi-billion dollar shortfall and jeopardizing priorities like public education. Discussions in Washington about extending and expanding the 2017 tax cuts only heightens these threats for working families in Pennsylvania.
The event was open to everyone and included a real conversation about policy proposals that could harm Pennsylvanians, and what we can do about them.
WHO:
The event featured the following speakers and organizations:
- Marc Stier, Pennsylvania Policy Center Executive Director
- Jessica Britain, Communications Director, Action Together NEPA
- Alisha Hoffman-Mirilovich, Executive Director, Action Together NEPA
- Representative Jim Haddock, PA House District 118
- John Kelly, Vice President, Bread Basket of NEPA
- Amanda Gordineer, MS, RDN, Director of Food Equity, Food Dignity
- Keshia Williams, SEIU Healthcare PA
- Senator John Fetterman, in absentia, supporting quote below
- Congressman Rob Bresnahan, in absentia, supporting quote below
CONVERSATION QUOTES:
Senator John Fetterman: “Pennsylvania families rely on programs like Medicaid and SNAP to make ends meet, put food on the table, and get the health care they need. No matter who is in the White House, I will fight to protect these programs for families and seniors. I’ve promised to jam up any legislation that cuts SNAP and I stand by that. We need to defend and expand these programs, not slash them to fund tax cuts for big corporations.”
Congressman Rob Bresnahan: “The federal government’s goal should always be to improve the lives of American citizens. Programs such as SNAP and Medicaid offer important assistance to those in need, ensuring all citizens have access to basic needs like food and healthcare. In my new role, I will see to it that these programs can continue to support millions of Americans nationwide.”
John Kelly, Bread Basket of NEPA: “With less support from SNAP, we anticipate a significant surge in demand for our services, potentially exceeding our current capacity, which we are very close to. This will require us to seek additional funding and put extra strain on our already overworked volunteers.”
Marc Stier, Pennsylvania Policy Center: “Pennsylvanians face a double threat: First, tax cuts for the wealthy multi-national corporations and ultra-rich individuals. And, to pay for those tax cuts, we expect cuts to Medicaid, SNAP and other critical programs and tariffs that will raise taxes and increase the costs of goods for all of us. If these plans are adopted the vast majority of Pennsylvanians will suffer.”
Amanda Gordineer, Director of Food Equity, Food Dignity: “SNAP invests over $3.1B back into Pennsylvania farmers and local grocery stores every year. Budget cuts to SNAP are a serious threat to our small food retailers. SNAP and Medicaid are vital lifelines to protect all of us if something unexpected happens like we lose our job, receive a serious health diagnosis, or get into an accident. These programs are investments in the health, well-being, and immediate economic stability of our community.”
Rep Jim Haddock: “Pennsylvania families shouldn’t have to choose between putting food on the table and accessing life-saving healthcare just so millionaires and wealthy corporations can get another tax break. These proposed cuts to Medicaid and SNAP are not only cruel but will devastate the most vulnerable members of our communities while widening the gap between the rich and the rest of us.”
Alisha Hoffman-Mirilovich, Executive Director of Action Together NEPA: “All across the country and right here in northeastern Pennsylvania, families are struggling to pay for their groceries and to find affordable access to healthcare. Proposals to cut Medicaid and SNAP would have a devastating impact on those families and our local communities. We’re having this urgent conversation to highlight that impact and fight for our friends and neighbors who rely on these critical programs.”
Keshia Williams, SEIU Healthcare PA: “Medicaid is not about policies, race, ethnicity, backgrounds, or political parties. It’s about people, it’s ensuring that everyone, regardless of their circumstances, has access to the care they need to stay healthy. Don’t take away our healthcare to give tax breaks to billionaires when we need to fight and protect and expand Medicaid. Pennsylvania needs CARE not CUTS.”
Pennsylvanians Together is a campaign working to ensure that all Pennsylvanians can thrive—not just survive. For too long, we’ve let politicians, who serve the interests of corporations, and the rich divide us based on what we look like, where we come from, where we worship, how much money we have or whether we are native-born or immigrants. By dividing us, they have given us public policies that do too little to help most Pennsylvanians while making the rich and corporations even wealthier.
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