Amber Christ

Minimizing Harm for “Dual Eligibles” | Mark Swartz | This article was written with the support of a journalism fellowship from the Journalists Network on Generations, the Gerontological Society of America and the NIHCM Foundation.  | …

Why are we doing less for low-income, older, and disabled Americans?
@amberchrist.bsky.social @justiceinaging.org
aginginamerica.news/2026/01/13/m...

Mitigating the Harms of Medicaid Work Requirements for Older Adults: Tools for State Advocates - Justice in Aging States can help people keep their Medicaid coverage by reducing paperwork and allowing them to self-report health conditions and caregiving responsibilities as exemptions from work requirements.

New Medicaid work requirements set to take effect at the end of this year will introduce complicated rules that will cause millions of eligible Americans to lose their health care.

Here's how states can take action to ease these hurdles:

Open Enrollment for 2026 Coverage through Medicare & the Marketplace—Basics for Advocates - Justice in Aging Learn about the Medicare and Marketplace Open Enrollment Periods (OEPs) for the 2026 plan year and get tips for choosing affordable coverage options for older adults.

Open enrollment season is here.

Be sure to ask your low-income patients or clients whether they are paying a Part D premium. If they are or don’t know, urge them to review their options with a SHIP counselor.

Open Enrollment for 2026 Coverage through Medicare & the Marketplace—Basics for Advocates - Justice in Aging Learn about the Medicare and Marketplace Open Enrollment Periods (OEPs) for the 2024 plan year and get tips for choosing affordable coverage options for older adults.

Medicare open enrollment is underway and Marketplace enrollment begins November 1. It's important to help your clients review their options and ensure older adults are not paying more than they should be for health care. justiceinaging.org/open-enrollm...

Federal watchdog report on Georgia's Medicaid program raises concerns about administrative costs A government watchdog has raised concerns about high administrative costs in Georgia's Medicaid program. The U.S.

As states around the country are mandated by HR1 to rush to implement Medicaid work requirements by HR 1 the risk for waste of taxpayer $$ to corporate vendors is huge.

Federal watchdog report on Georgia's Medicaid program raises concerns about administrative costs apnews.com/article/geor...

Are States Ready to Implement HR 1 and Medicaid Work Reporting Requirements? Key Findings State systems are unprepared for federal demands to implement a Medicaid work reporting requirement and other onerous changes. HR 1 (P.L. 119-21) requires states to implement complex w…

New @georgetownccf.bsky.social report using #Medicaid performance indicators to assess states' readiness to implement harmful work reporting requirements and other #Medicaid cuts included in the budget reconciliation law: ccf.georgetown.edu/2025/09/04/a...

RFK Jr. is getting personal authority over who to kick off of Medicaid “It's just a way of cutting people off of coverage and then blaming them for it.”

“It’s completely counterintuitive to not allow people to have health care until they’re at a point where they can ‘prove it,'" “At that point, they’re definitely not going to be able to work, and then, more importantly, they don’t have access to health care.” www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

The Madden Sisters Don’t Want to Be Institutionalized

What do Medicaid cuts really mean? For Kristy & Carrie Madden, it’s losing supports that make daily life possible. HCBS are optional under federal law, so states often cut them first. New work requirements add even more risk for people w/ disabilities & caregivers. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/18/m...

ICYMI: @justiceinaging.org has a new explainer and other resources on HR 1 and its impact on older adults. 👇

Happy 90th Birthday, Social Security!

He built Michigan's Medicaid work requirement system. Now he's warning other states Michigan's health director spent a year and $30 million building a work requirements system for Medicaid. The problems he encountered have him worried now that 40 states must do the same by 2027.

Michigan's health director spent a year and $30 million building a work requirements system for Medicaid. The problems he encountered have him worried now that 40 states must do the same by 2027.

Why So Many Seniors Can't Afford Long-Term Care A growing group of middle-income elderly people are too rich for government benefits but can't afford long-term care.

Caregiving for older relatives often means sacrificing careers and savings. The consequences can ripple across generations:

“They’re risking their future retirement, which increases the likelihood they’ll age into poverty.” @amberchrist.bsky.social explains.

Welcome! You are invited to join a webinar: Medicaid Cuts in H.R.1 - Updates for Aging Advocates. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the webinar. In early July, President Trump signed H.R.1 also known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” after narrowly passing both the House and the Senate. The bill cuts over a trillion dollars from Medicaid, Me...

Join @nataliekean.bsky.social & Gelila Selassie on August 13th to discuss the impact of Medicaid cuts on older adults as a result of the passage of the budget reconciliation bill. Register here: us06web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

Why So Many Seniors Can't Afford Long-Term Care A growing group of middle-income elderly people are too rich for government benefits but can't afford long-term care.

I wrote about the seniors who are "too rich" for Medicaid but too poor to afford the long-term care they need. Their numbers are growing as the country ages and will likely grow more with Medicaid cuts.
time.com/7304510/seni...

Protect Medicaid Vigil Join the Protect Medicaid Vigil to stand up for essential healthcare services. Learn more about our events, partners, and how you can take action.

As Medicaid and other critical programs are slashed, people across the country are coming together to hold space for what we’ve lost and demand that our elected leaders prioritize care over profits.

Watch the livestream now: protectmedicaidvigil.com

Webinar: Access to Medicare for People Leaving Incarceration Connecting with health coverage after leaving jail or prison can be difficult and confusing. A growing number of older adults are incarcerated, meaning that Medicare is increasingly a health coverage ...

Older adults leaving incarceration face immense challenges as they re-enter society. Chief among them: securing healthcare.

At our upcoming webinar, our attorneys will share their expertise on new Medicare enrollment rules, accessing Medicare while under community supervision, and more.

Register 👇

Promotional graphic for a 60-hour Medicaid vigil starting July 23 at 9am and ending July 26 at 12pm. Features an illustration of a megaphone, candle on a holder, and the text 'we won't stop fighting for our care.'

We won’t get over it. We won’t forget. We won’t stop fighting. ✊🏾

We're HEADED BACK to D.C. for a 60-hour vigil on Capitol Hill to demand action.

Are you ready? This is the fight for our care and our lives. Join us.
protectmedicaidvigil.com

How are CA social service advocates preparing for GOP budget cuts? The Trump/GOP budget bill will cause millions in California to lose their healthcare and food assistance. How are advocates preparing for what's to come?

Joined partners for a conversation about what the newly passed budget reconciliation bill means for California. In our hour, we just began to scratch the surface of the serious harms this law will cause to people and communities in California and nationwide. www.kalw.org/show/your-ca...

Justice in Aging's Statement on Final Passage of Budget Bill - Justice in Aging The bill sets a dangerous precedent that Congress will use Medicaid, Medicare, and SNAP as a piggy bank for billionaires.

"Cutting Medicaid, Medicare, and SNAP is morally indefensible under any circumstance, but this budget bill is particularly cruel," said @kevinprindiville.bsky.social.

It endangers not only the lives of today’s older adults but future generations as well.

Read Justice in Aging's full statement:

Congrats, Laurel!

New analysis from Manatt Health about the impacts on coverage loss and hospital funding losses from the Senate passed budget bill available here:
shvs.org/resource/sen...

Justice in Aging Condemns Senate Vote to Gut Medicaid and SNAP - Justice in Aging Justice in Aging condemns the Senate's passage of the budget reconciliation bill, which would cut health care and nutrition assistance that older adults,

The Senate just passed a dangerous and deeply unpopular budget bill that cuts health care and food assistance to pay for tax breaks for billionaires.

@kevinprindiville.bsky.social characterized the bill as "a staggering betrayal of our nation's older adults."

Read our full statement:

Federal Medicaid Cuts Would Force States To Eliminate Services for Disabled Adults, Older Adults, and Children The reconciliation bill that just passed out of committee in the House proposes cutting Medicaid and therefore gutting essential services upon which disabled and older people rely.

On this first day of disability pride, the senators may vote to strip disabled people off Medicaid and SNAP. www.americanprogress.org/article/fede...

The law doesn't even have to change for states to stop covering prescriptions, respiratory care at-home, home and community-based services, hospice etc.

A lot of optional Medicaid benefits that can be taken away from people even before they're kicked off Medicaid. www.medicaid.gov/medicaid/ben...

TSen. Scott amendment effectively repeals Medicaid expansion in only a few years. New analysis here: www.cbpp.org/research/med...

The Congressional Budget Office just released new numbers: this budget bill would cut almost $1 TRILLION from Medicaid.

That means millions losing their health care.
Everyone else paying more.
Hospitals closing and jobs lost.

This is a disaster for working families.

They can tweak the Big Bad Bill all they want, but the plan is still the same: gut Medicaid to make billionaires richer.

Don’t be fooled.
A bad bill with edits is still a bad bill.


We won't stay silent.

#HandsOffMedicaid #ThisBillKills

Thread on just posted Senate Budget Committee reconciliation bill language. Despite Byrd Rule problems the draconian #Medicaid cuts are still largely the same as in initial language from 1.5 weeks ago and remain harsher than the House passed bill's cuts. (1/x): www.budget.senate.gov/imo/media/do...

‘People are going to die’: how Medicaid work requirements cost people their health insurance Those caring for relatives with severe disabilities say planned Republican cuts will be fatal for some

“States are not ready or equipped to implement these work requirements, and that’s going to cause even more harm." @nataliekean.bsky.social of @justiceinaging.org laying down the facts on the reconciliation package moving through the senate www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025... #Medicaid

No Exceptions: Examples Showing the Failings of Medicaid Work Requirement Exemptions for People with Disabilities - Justice in Aging Disability-related eligibility processes for Medicaid are often lengthy and overly restrictive, ultimately creating barriers to enrollment

A major proposal in the reconciliation bill would require people to report work to retain Medicaid eligibility. While lawmakers claim that people w. disabilities would not lose coverage, that is not true as Gelila Selassie & @jenlav.bsky.social explain. justiceinaging.org/examples-sho...