The Iowa Democratic Party held an event in Sioux City on Friday that was critical of Republican Party policy moves on healthcare.
Democratic Iowa State Senator Catelin Drey and House Representative J.D. Scholten joined three speakers giving their experiences with the healthcare system. A common theme in the Decade of Denied Care forum was that Medicaid may not be present in the near future for many people.
Garie Lewis, of Sioux City, said he has been on Medicaid for about 20 years.
"if I lose Medicaid, I will be homeless in short time," he said
“A hard truth that I need those who don’t use medicaid to hear is that your healthcare is also dependent on a functioning medicaid and medicare system,” said Drey. She also noted that once Medicaid cuts are implemented more healthcare facilities will continue to close when resources are already limited.
“The Republicans and Governor Reynolds privatized Medicaid and what we’ve seen in almost a decade is that it has cost the state more and we have less services,” said Scholten.
One of the speakers, Abi Calvert, a licensed independent social worker, shared her experience of needing Medicaid and helping people try to obtain medicaid. She dramatically fanned out 27 pieces of paper as the first step to apply for Medicaid, to show the complexity of applying.
She said that Medicaid helped her afford medicine until she got a better job, medication that Calvert has been taking since she was 6.
Calvert debated between a job she loved and that supported her family ,or attempting to qualify for secondary Medicaid, something Calvert said no one should have to do.
According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, about 270,000 residents in Iowa’s rural communities are covered by medicaid and about 603,000 of people in the state are insured through medicaid.
Iowa’s Democratic Party holds event regarding healthcare
