Colorado State Treasurer Dave Young joined a press briefing last week by Americans for Responsible Growth, a national consumer advocacy organization, criticizing the Trump administration’s recent budget proposal that would slash Medicaid.
Young, who is finishing his final term, warned that the proposed cuts to Medicaid would lead to an increased tax burden for local governments.
“As treasurers, we’re charged with keeping our tax dollars safe and planning for a strong financial future, that mission depends on providing quality health care for all Americans,” Young said. “When people lack the right coverage, they seek treatment in emergency rooms, and this creates a massive tax burden on local communities and states. Treating needed care, but not care that’s needed in the emergency room, is a really ineffective way to promote good healthcare and doesn’t result in good outcomes.”
In February, Congress rammed through a budget resolution calling for at least $4.5 trillion in cuts to federal spending over the next ten years. Medicaid, an insurance program that covers low-income people, would be the bulk of $880 billion in cuts from the Energy and Commerce Committee.
Young called the Republican budget proposal as reckless and causing harm to vulnerable Americans.
“Republicans’ current budget plan, backed by President Trump, is not only financially reckless, but it is needlessly cruel,” Young said. “In Colorado alone, we have about 1.2 million seniors, disabled people, pregnant mothers, and working-class families that depend on Medicaid. If federal cuts go through, our state must make up the difference by slashing other essential programs like education or kicking thousands of Coloradans off Medicaid. Neither option is acceptable to me.”
In his statement, Young said that his defense of Medicaid was also a matter of personal importance, referencing his own family’s struggle with health insurance. Young’s sister was born developmentally disabled and has had a history of significant physical health complications that require constant care.
“For an entire lifetime, our family worked to try and provide care for her, but her needs are so tremendous, for us to deliver life-sustaining care for her far outstrips our abilities. Even if we quit our jobs, we just don’t have the capacity to do this. This is why we are so appreciative of what Medicaid provides because it has allowed her, through almost 69 years of life, to have life-sustaining care. Without this critical resource, we would have really struggled.”
Young was joined by fellow state treasurers, Laura Montoya (D-New Mexico) and Elizebeth Steiner (D-Oregon), both of whom referred to the cuts as dangerous.
“The recently passed budget resolution, which will cut $880 billion from the U.S. House Energy and Committee over the next ten years, would be impossible without shattering Medicaid and Medicare,” Montoya added. “Medicaid and Medicare are the largest payers of health care in the nation. If the federal government slashes funding hospitals, doctors’ offices, and clinics that depend on these funds will be forced to either raise premiums and co-pays for patients or shut down altogether.”
At 34.3% of its population on Medicaid, New Mexico has the most residents per capita who use that service. In comparison, 18.7% of Coloradans use Medicaid.
Still, the percentage of Medicaid recipients in Colorado varies between congressional districts.
Eligibility requirements for Medicaid differ by state, with the federal government setting mandatory eligibility groups that include: low-income families, individuals receiving Supplemental Security Income, qualified pregnant women, and children.
According to the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), a non-partisan health policy research organization, Medicaid covers 63% of nursing home residents in the United States.
Additionally, around 60% of America’s 73 million children receive their health insurance via Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), which extends Medicaid to children in low-income families who make just enough to not qualify for standard Medicaid programs.
Young, a former state representative and high school teacher from Greeley, was elected as State Treasurer in 2018 and is finishing out his last term.
