AS THE FALLOUT FROM TRUMP’S DEVASTATING MEDICAID CUTS BEGINS, THREATENING HEALTHCARE FOR THOUSANDS IN THE CATSKILLS & HUDSON VALLEY, SCHUMER ANNOUNCES NEW BILL TO REVERSE GOP MEDICAID CUTS – PROTECTING LOCAL HOSPITALS, LOWERING HEALTHCARE COSTS, AND SAVING COUNTY BUDGETS FROM HAVING TO PAY FOR TRUMP’S CUTS
Trump & Congressional Republicans Rushed To Pass Largest Healthcare Cut In History To Fund Tax Breaks For Corporations & Billionaires – Standing At Garnet Health Medical Center-Catskills Which Already Has Been Forced To Reduce Essential Medical Services In The Rural Catskills & Layoff Staff In The Hudson Valley Citing These Cuts – Schumer Says Enough Is Enough, We Must Reverse Rural Hospital Cuts & Protect The 1.5 Million New Yorkers At Risk Of Losing Healthcare
Schumer Announces New Legislation – With Frontline Hudson Valley Doctors & Nurses – To Make Healthcare More Affordable, Reverse GOP Cuts Before More Permanent Damage Is Done, And Extend Healthcare Tax Credits Families Use To Keep Their ACA Premiums Affordable
Schumer: We Must Reverse These Awful GOP Medicaid Cuts And Protect Healthcare For Hudson Valley & Rural Hospitals Across America
As the fallout from Trump and the GOP’s devastating Medicaid cuts in their ‘Big Ugly Betrayal’ begins in the Hudson Valley and over 1.5 million New Yorkers projected to lose healthcare, U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer stood at Garnet Health Medical Center-Catskills, which has already been forced to reduce medical services & lay off dozens of staff citing the GOP’s deep Medicaid cuts, and announced his new legislation – the Protecting Health Care And Lowering Costs Act – to repeal the devastating healthcare cuts and permanently extend the ACA premium tax credits that are set to expire at the end of this year, which if not extended will raise families healthcare costs.
Standing in Sullivan County, where 37% of the population is covered by Medicaid, Schumer explained how these rushed, ill-conceived Trump Medicaid cuts – which were made to fund tax breaks for billionaires – has already caused rural hospitals across America to scramble with the worst still yet to come, on top of ripping away health coverage for 150,000 in Catskills and the Hudson Valley, while also increasing ER wait times, increasing out of pocket costs & premiums, reducing medical services, and blowing huge holes in county budgets.
“Trump’s ‘Big, Ugly Betrayal’ is one of the most devastating bills for the Catskills & Hudson Valley healthcare we’ve ever seen. We are already seeing the impacts at our rural hospitals, including right here at Garnet Health Medical Center-Catskills, where they have already been forced to reduce vital medical services and lay off staff. More than 150,000 New Yorkers in the Catskills and Hudson Valley are expected to lose healthcare, and these cuts will be felt especially hard in our rural areas and communities like Sullivan County, where 37% of our families receive healthcare through Medicaid, among the highest in New York State,” said Senator Schumer. “This is a gut punch to Hudson Valley healthcare from Garnet Health Medical Center to the Center for Discovery and will hurt so many seniors, families, and children who rely on Medicaid just to survive. Trump is ripping away your healthcare and funding from Hudson Valley hospitals just to give bigger tax breaks to his billionaire friends, but it doesn’t need to be this way.
Schumer continued, “That’s why I’m announcing a new bill that will repeal all of Trump’s healthcare cuts and extend premium tax credits that Republicans would otherwise let expire in December. The fallout is just beginning from the devastating cuts in this horrible bill, with Garnet Health announcing layoffs and cuts to medical services, while rural hospitals across the country see higher healthcare costs, longer ER wait times, and more, causing panic to set in for Republicans. We must right this wrong, and Senate Democrats will lead the way to protect our hospitals and make healthcare more affordable.”
Schumer’s new legislation would reverse all of the health care cuts in the “Big, Ugly Betrayal,” including those to Medicaid, and would permanently extend the ACA premium tax credits. The entire Democratic caucus has signed on to co-sponsor the legislation. The full text of the legislation can be seen here. As currently written, the Republican-passed legislation would kick nearly 15 million people across America off their health insurance and total more than one trillion dollars in health care cuts, all to help pay for bigger tax breaks for billionaires.
In the Mid-Hudson region, the average monthly cost increase for a couple is expected to be $206, a 31% increase due to the elimination of premium tax credits in Trump’s bill. Senate Democrats are fighting back and pushing to reverse these devastating cuts and extend tax credits to make health care affordable.
Schumer said the GOP healthcare cuts will shift the costs of care to local governments, resulting in agonizing decisions with county executives and state legislators forced to decide where to make up for the huge budget hole caused by the staggering loss in federal funding. Counties like Sullivan will be forced to shoulder the burden of increased costs of Medicaid, using more local dollars to manage people’s coverage with less federal funding coming in.
The GOP’s plan to cut Medicaid has already hit New York State. Earlier this year, Garnet Health laid off 42 employees at its system hospitals and cut programs for Hudson Valley patients, citing the disastrous Medicaid cuts in the GOP’s “Big, Beautiful Bill.” In Sullivan County, the Catskills campus just ended outpatient diabetes care, widening a gap in essential care one of the region’s most underserved areas. In Orange, Garnet Health Medical Center-Middletown, a potential trauma center downgrade would put pressure on county budgets. And in Ulster, where rural clinics already run on tight margins, even modest Medicaid cuts could trigger service reductions.
Schumer was also joined by The Center for Discovery CEO Terry Hamlin, who emphasized how cuts in the GOP’s Big Beautiful Bill will also create unique challenges for patients with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families at their center, which is a nationally renowned provider of health care and education services for over 1,200 children and adults with complex conditions, medical frailties, and autism spectrum disorders. The Center, which is the largest employer in Sullivan County, recently opened a Children’s Specialty Hospital in Rock Hill to address the needs of children ages 5 to 21 with autism and other complex conditions, serving a large Medicaid population. An estimated 65% of The Center for Discovery’s funding comes from Medicaid.
Schumer said this is a dark preview of what is to come now that the GOP has enacted the largest healthcare cut in history to pay for their tax cuts for billionaires and wealthy corporations. The GOP’s Medicaid cuts will force healthcare facilities to cancel services, lay off staff, and rip away healthcare from thousands of seniors and kids. Overall, New York State estimates that the state will lose $13.5 billion because of the new federal healthcare cuts. With Congressional Republicans already panicking about the devastating impact of these unpopular cuts, Schumer is pushing Senate Democrats to lead the way in fixing their mistake to protect healthcare for millions of Americans.
Garnet Health CEO and President Jonathan Schiller said, "These cuts will have devastating consequences for patients and hospitals across New York and especially in Sullivan County. We urge all lawmakers to recognize the real-world impact on access to care and work toward solutions that protect the health of our communities."
1199 SEIU Hudson Valley Vice President Angela Lane said, “The massive healthcare cuts in Trump’s Big Awful bill mean we’ll lose tens of thousands of good healthcare jobs in our state. Trump’s cuts will rip access to care from millions of vulnerable New Yorkers and drive healthcare service cuts across the state. For New York hospitals like Garnet Health-Catskills, it could even mean shuttering the doors entirely. We do not accept this cuts. Healthcare workers stand shoulder to shoulder with Senator Schumer and other leaders who understand what’s at stake for our state and our nation – we will not stop fighting until every dollar of essential healthcare funding is restored.”
The Center for Discovery CEO Terry Hamlin said, “The majority of the individuals we serve at The Center for Discovery rely on Medicaid, and 63% of our $155 million operating budget comes from it. These cuts aren’t abstract numbers — they are a direct hit to the lifeline that keeps people alive, keeps families together, and keeps our rural county strong. The impact extends far beyond those we serve. As the largest employer in Sullivan County, with 1,800 staff and growing, Medicaid dollars pay our doctors, nurses, therapists, teachers, and direct support professionals. Without this important funding, you’re not only hurting vulnerable people — you’re taking paychecks out of the hands of working families and draining our local economy."
Sullivan County Manager Josh Potosek said, “These “cuts” are not saving anyone money – they simply shift more costs to states and counties. What this means is that taxpayers will pay significantly more to provide services which counties like Sullivan are mandated to offer. We’re already wrestling with a potential property tax hike just to cover the increased expenses that will be coming our way in 2026, and we’ve yet to learn what New York State’s reaction will be to the impacts of these Federal-level changes. We appreciate Senator Schumer’s steadfast attention to addressing this critical situation.”
New York State Assemblymember Paula Elaine Kay said, “As we’ve seen with many of the policies coming out of the White House, these Medicaid cuts are a direct attack on our rural and disenfranchised communities. Sullivan and Orange Counties—the two counties my district encompasses—stand to lose nearly $15 million as a result of these cuts. This will be devastating not only for our local hospitals, but for all the people in our communities who rely on these critical services. These counties have long struggled to keep healthcare accessible, and now they face an untenable task. While families won’t see any personal savings from these cuts, they will face crowded emergency rooms, skyrocketing medical bills, and the disappearance of essential services. I will not stand by as care continues to be stripped away from the people who need it most. I commend Senator Schumer for proposing legislation to address this crisis, and I urge our federal partners to do right by their constituents and restore these cuts before we force families into making the most devastating choices.”
District 5 Legislator Catherine Scott, chair of the Legislature’s Health & Human Services Committee, said, “Cuts to Medicaid threaten the very survival of rural hospitals like ours in Sullivan County. If we lose our local hospital, 10% of our residents will be left outside the critical ‘golden hour’—the window in which trauma patients have the highest chance of survival with timely treatment. Garnet Health is not only a vital healthcare provider; it’s also a major economic engine, employing over 600 local residents whose incomes support our entire community. And for many of our most vulnerable neighbors, the Harris hospital emergency room is their only access to primary care. In short, these cuts would create a healthcare crisis in Sullivan County—with devastating consequences.”
Town of Thompson Supervisor William Rieber said, “Rural hospitals are the literal lifeblood of this country. These cuts will no doubt cost lives and set back over our health for generations. Shameful."
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