RAHWAY — Patients and advocates recently had a stance that healthcare is for everybody.
In Madison Avenue Park, Rahway, participants on Tuesday, April 28, protested the more than $1 trillion in health care cuts passed into law by Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-NJ) and his fellow Republicans. These cuts are devastating Medicaid, making Affordable Care Act premiums skyrocket and putting hundreds of hospitals, at least 12 in New Jersey, at risk of closing or reducing services. The cuts are hurting families in Rahway, where 16.5 percent of residents rely on Medicaid.
Jon Bauman, best known as “Bowzer” from the hit TV series and musical group Sha Na Na, is the president of Social Security Works. He and Alex Lawson travel around the country to advocate for programs like Social Security and Medicare. They were two of the speakers at the event.
Liz Flynn, director of Organizing New Jersey in Action, introduced the event and said, “We’re all here collectively to lift our voices and hold congress accountable.”
Lawson said that what is currently happening is the largest theft of healthcare in the history of the world. Situated across the park was Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital. Lawson said, “There’s a high likelihood this hospital is going to close. They cut a trillion dollars from Medicaid so they could give tax cuts to the richest people in the world. The American people are fed up with politicians who are only for the billionaires. Stop taking our health care! We live in the richest country in the world, of course we can afford health care for everyone in this country. People are going to get sicker and not get the care they need. Nobody is not getting hurt by this except billionaires. But remember we have the power. When we fight, we win. The American people are waking up.”
Bauman briefly spoke about being in Sha Na Na and said, “But today I’m here to talk about a serious subject. I’ve been working on senior issues many years. We can not stand for this. We know New Jersey Representative Tom Kean Jr. is struggling with a health care problem. We know that Representative Tom Kean Jr. has really good health insurance. We wish the kind of health care Tom Kean has for everybody. It’s only going to get worse. Stop taking our health care.”
Laura Waddell, NJ Citizen Action Healthcare program director, said, “When politicians in Washington decide to play games with our health care, this is where the consequences show up. More families are choosing between seeing a doctor and paying rent. While families are basically struggling to afford basic care, they are fast tracking budget deals for ICE. They found money for that. But no money for your health care. This is a full assault on our health care. We are here today because we believe in something powerful. Health care is a human right, not something you lose due to politics. If you choose billionaires over patients, we will hold you accountable.”
Theresa Luoni, impacted CD7 resident and storyteller, said, “Human beings with real needs are dropped off at homeless shelters when Medicaid runs out. As I watch this happen, I can’t help but see my children’s future. I’m the mother of two autistic boys. Without the right therapies, their needs escalate. My children are not statistics. They are not just autistic. They are human. They deserve safety. They deserve dignity. We go to bed every night and wonder if the care we depend on will go away. We got to stop choosing billionaires over people.”
Kaitlyn Wojtowicz, executive director of Planned Parenthood Action of NJ, said, “The federal administration is hell bent on cutting off planned parenthood. We are in a fight for survival.”
Tamara Henry and Cyrenia Hood are certified nursing assistants. Henry said, “As health care workers we are there to provide care and dignity. We are understaffed and underpaid. We care deeply for the work we do but are pushed beyond limits.”
Hood said, “Enough is enough. Stop the Medicaid cut.”
Medical student Tayyiaba Farooq spoke about her parents coming to America and working constantly to make ends meet. They could not afford health insurance. “Over time, that caused consequences,” said Farooq.
She explained that her father had cataracts and avoided surgery until he got Medicaid. “Medicaid gave my father the health care he deserves,” she said. “But he still lives with consequences. Thanks to the current administration, 1.5 million Americans lost health insurance. We must remind our representatives, health care is a human right.”
The Rev. Marti Robinson, pastor of Ebenezer AME Church of Rahway, said. “I stand here in front of you as a shepherd who loves all of God’s people. I believe hospitals are sacred, special, and significant. Healing means hope. Unfortunately, thousands among thousands are stressed out. We must ask ourselves, what kind of community are we becoming? All of us have a responsibility to make sure no one is left behind. Together, let’s make sure to let us continue to use compassion and justice to send a strong message to Congress. Everyone deserves affordable healthcare. We need care, not cuts.”
This event was part of the Stop Taking Our Health Care Campaign. Read more at: https://stoptakingourhealthcare.org/.
Photos by Maryanne Christiano-Mistretta
