“Hands Off CHIP!” Rally Demands Congressman Katko Vote Against $7 Billion in Cuts to CHIP
“HANDS OFF CHIP!”: CENTRAL NEW YORKERS RALLY TO DEMAND CONGRESSMAN KATKO VOTE AGAINST $7 BILLION IN REPUBLICAN CUTS TO CHIP
After Passing TrumpTax And Blasting $1.5 Trillion Hole In Deficit, Republicans Want To Pay For Their Tax Scam By Taking Health Care Away From Children
More Than 21,000 Children In Congressman John Katko’s District Rely On CHIP For Access To Affordable Health Care
OSWEGO — Central New York parents, grandparents and activists rallied today in Franklin Square to demand that Congressman John Katko pledge to vote against President Trump’s and Congressional Republicans’ plan to make draconian cuts to the Children’s Health Insurance Program in order to pay for the $1.5 trillion tax break for the wealthy they passed in December.
“First they handed out a $1.5 trillion tax break to their rich friends and campaign donors, and now Republicans like Congressman Katko want to pay for it by cutting critical programs that serve the neediest families in the country,” said Ursula Rozum, a local resident and former CHIP recipient.“CHIP insures almost 9 million children, including more than 21,000 here in Katko’s own district. This is a callous and heartless maneuver which wouldn’t even be on the table if Congressman Katko and his party hadn’t rushed through a tax scam that rewards the richest fraction of the country on the backs of working families.”
CHIP connects children with life-saving health care, and offers the only access for their families to the care they need to manage their pre-existing or chronic conditions. It helped reduce the number of uninsured children in the country to a record low of just 5 percent, and without adequate federal funding, states will face critical financial shortfalls, costing children their health care.
Congressman Katko voted to pass the TrumpTax in December, claiming it would create jobs and boost wages. Of course, the exact opposite has happened. Corporations are spending their savings on stock buybacks to reward executives and shareholders at 64 times the rate they’re spending it on worker raises and bonuses. Only 4.2 percent of workers have gotten a raise or bonus as a result of the TrumpTax, while their employers rake in billions in savings.
Now, Congressman Katko and the rest of the Congressional Republicans are considering clawing back $15 billion in already-approved federal spending to justify letting their massive tax break for the wealthy continue. As a result, millions of children – and tens of thousands in Central New York – will face the possibility of living without insurance.
About Speak Out Central New York
Speak Out CNY is dedicated to educating and empowering Central New Yorkers through grassroots organizing, digital advocacy, and community partnerships. By advocating for policies that help working families make ends meet, we aim to encourage our members of Congress to protect our health care and work to expand economic opportunity.
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