LAFAYETTE - On Tuesday, March 18, as part of the nationwide Medicaid Day of Action, House Assistant Minority Leader Joe Neguse (CO-02) hosted Governor Jared Polis for a tour of a Clinica community health center at 1735 S. Public Road. Their visit underscored the potential harm of House Republicans’ proposed Medicaid cut.

During the brief tour, Clinica staff said they work with many homeless who will lose their insurance if cuts go through. Clinica staff members also go to public schools, but they don’t offer vaccinations right now. Polis said Congress will ensure that they can give vaccinations.

After the brief tour of the Clinica facility, Polis, Neguse, and Simon Smith, President & CEO of Clinica Family Health and Wellness, gave brief remarks.

Polis said that if the cuts pass, the cost will be shifted to the public, and it will increase the cost of health care. “It would be a disaster,” he said.

Medicaid covers people all over the state, Polis said. “We are already doing more with less,” he added. It is estaimated that about 100,000 Coloradoans will be affected.

Neguse said he is grateful to his constituents and to Polis for saving people money around health care. Neguse has represented Colorado’s 2nd District since 2019. He said he has strong community ties and is a Lafayette resident.

“We are raising the alarm,” Neguse said. Medicaid cuts would have a dramatic impact, and 90,000 people in this district alone could be affected. The cuts will take effect in two months if they are signed into law.

Simon Smith noted that Clinica is a comprehensive medical health center. “I’m angry,” he said. “This is an incredible time.”

Clinica will lose its reimbursement, Smith added. “About 40 percent of medical patients are now underserved. The cuts affect our most vulnerable citizens.”

According to the Center for American Progress, Congressional Republicans’ proposed Medicaid cuts would cost Colorado’s 2nd District $1.12 billion and eliminate coverage for approximately 89,445 individuals. Medicaid plays an even bigger role in supporting maternal and child health in Colorado. Across the state of Colorado, Medicaid programs cover 44 percent of births and ensure care for nearly 40 percent of children ages 18 and younger, according to a Clinica news release.

Medicaid is a government program, jointly managed by federal and state governments, which  helps cover medical costs for eligible people with low income and resources. There are federal  rules and requirements that all states must follow, but each state runs its own  Medicaid program, so services differ depending on where you live, according to the Clinica website. 

Both Medicaid and Medicare were signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1965 with Title XIX (also known as the Medicare and Medicaid Act) of the Social Security Act. 

Today, Medicaid is the primary program providing comprehensive coverage of health and long-term care to 83 million low-income people in the United States—meaning roughly one in five people living in the United States depend on Medicaid. 

Clinica Family Health & Wellness has provided essential medical, dental, and mental health care last year to 30,895 patients and clients covered by Medicaid or Medicare. Without this coverage, a vast majority of these individuals and families would not be able to afford health care.

Clinica locations include Gilpin County and Nederland.

Clinica Family Health & Wellness is a community health center, a medical safety net for those who otherwise might fall through the cracks of the American health care system. For more than 40 years, Clinica has existed to provide health care to the individuals and families in our communities at a price they can afford, according to their website.

For more information about Clinica, go to https://www.clinica.org/