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Nearly 100 people gathered Saturday in Alton Baker Park to oppose federal Medicaid cuts that, elected officials say, could force Oregon to make tough decisions about access to care. Organized by SEIU 503, the rally highlighted how the potential loss could affect workers, families, and people with disabilities who rely on Medicaid-funded services.
Devon Martin is preparing for a milestone he’s long dreamed of: graduating from the University of Oregon. But like many people his age who are in the transition between school and a career, Martin, 26, doesn’t have employer-sponsored health insurance.
Martin is on the Oregon Health Plan (OHP), funded by Medicaid — a program that could face nearly $800 billion in cuts under a proposed Republican plan in Congress. For Martin, who has autism and dyslexia, Medicaid has been essential to building his independence.
“It’s a place where I can get help from other people, find community,” he said. “That’s an entire system which, if it goes away or gets defunded, then, I mean, think about someone who can’t walk, can’t talk, or has a disability where they literally need an interpreter that just disappears.”
Martin was among dozens of frustrated Medicaid recipients during a rally Saturday in Alton Baker Park. Nearly 1.4 million low-income Oregonians turn to Medicaid for health services. That’s about 130,000 people in Lane County.
Oregon’s budget can’t withstand deep federal cuts to Medicaid, House Speaker Julie Fahey, D-Eugene, said during a town hall Wednesday. Slashing Medicaid funding is a “worst-case scenario” and would force the state to make difficult decisions about access to health care, she said.
Fahey reiterated that message at Saturday’s rally, joining a panel of speakers who shared how Medicaid shows up in their lives every day.
“This fight is personal,” Fahey said. “It’s about getting home care hours to the people that need them. It’s about preventing mental health crises in our youth, and it’s about letting new parents focus on their families and not have to pay for the cost of birth. That is what Medicaid means.”
SEIU 503, Oregon’s union for public service and care providers, organized the rally as part of its push to defend funding that supports hundreds of jobs, from social service administrators to hospital workers.
For many SEIU members, it’s more than just a job. That includes Martin’s mom, Wednesday Martin.
“I’m doing more than being a mother. I’m a case manager. I’m a direct support person,” said Wednesday Martin, who works as a state rehabilitation counselor. “It’s great that I’m here to help him but he really wants to be on his own.”
That’s why both Wednesday Martin and her son have looked to resources that support his independence in the long term.
As a member of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, Devon Martin received services that helped with housing and tuition while in school. He was recently accepted into a Eugene-based program for young adults with autism who are learning to be self-sufficient. Medicaid helps pay for the program.
Martin’s path has always required paperwork and advocacy to access the support he needs. These proposed cuts are just another turn in the road, but he’s continuing forward, for himself and for others.
“I’ve worked with and talked to so many great people who’ve struggled and worked hard and need the support of Medicaid,” he said. “I know that if they have the same help and community I’ve had, they can take it and do something good.”
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This story was updated to correct a quote from Wednesday Martin.
