Letter to Charles Schumer, Senate Majority Leader, and Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House - Reps. Robin Kelly, Yvette Clarke, Congressional Black Caucus and Congressional Hispanic Caucus Urge Leadership to Permanently Close Medicaid Coverage Gap

Letter

Dear Majority Leader Schumer and Madam Speaker Pelosi,

As Congress moves forward to craft the major economic recovery package, we, the leaders and
members of the Congressional Black Caucus, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus write once
again to strongly urge you to close the Medicaid "coverage gap" with a permanent and
comprehensive federal policy. As we wrote to you in June, closing this is one of the single most
important steps we can take to reduce racial health inequities across the United States, as 60
percent of the 2.2 million uninsured people who remain without a pathway to health coverage --
despite the promise of the Affordable Care Act -- are Black, Hispanic, Asian or Pacific Islander.
This health policy investment under consideration would significantly expand health care
coverage and reduce health coverage disparities.

As we previously wrote, people in the coverage gap have been deprived of the wide-ranging
benefits of Medicaid expansion, including the reduction of overall mortality associated with
cancer, cardiovascular disease, and liver disease. Expansion has decreased racial disparities in
coverage, affordability and health outcomes, most notably maternal and infant mortality.
Expansion provides coverage to people before they become pregnant, providing access to vital
pre-conception care and care in the critical early weeks and months of pregnancy, making
expansion a key component of our strategy to address the Black maternal health crisis.

As the process unfolds on this recovery package, we need to stress that this legislation presents a
unique, historic opportunity to close the gap in coverage for millions of people who have no way
to get it and get them coverage once and for all. We need a permanent, comprehensive solution
to give them certainty and security that they can rest assured that their coverage will continue.

The coronavirus pandemic has continued to illuminate the far-reaching, fatal consequences of
inadequate access to healthcare. Addressing the Medicaid coverage gap is critical to correcting
decades of unacceptable and unjust denials of health coverage to underserved people, especially
people of color. The forthcoming recovery package should include policies that permanently
close the coverage gap to significantly reduce racial health disparities and ensure all Americans
have access to basic healthcare. We look forward to working with you to reduce racial disparities
associated with the coverage gap and once and for all realize the promise of the Affordable Care
Act for all Americans regardless of where they live.

Thank you for taking our views into consideration.