“Don’t tell me what you value, show me your budget, and I’ll tell you what you value”.

The quote above is something we heard President Joe Biden say a number of times to emphasize that budgetary decisions reflect true priorities. 

H.R.1 (we decline to call it beautiful), the 2025 budget reconciliation bill passed by the U.S. Congress and signed into law on July 4, 2025, contained the tax and spending policies that form the core of Trump’s second-term agenda. Clearly what they value is increasing the wealth of the already wealthy and expanding corporate profits. 

To fund the tax cuts for corporations and high-income earners, the federal government will be cutting essential services for low-income households. It is estimated that over 15 million people, including about 174,000 Oklahomans, could lose health insurance by 2034 due to Medicaid cuts and new administrative barriers that will cause eligible individuals to lose benefits due to paperwork issues. 

To add insult to injury, the war in Iran is costing more than $1 billion per day. Why is this war of choice prioritized over providing services to those in need? 

Hospitals and clinics – especially in rural and low-income areas – depend on Medicaid to keep their doors open. According to this report by the Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform, which focuses on developing sustainable healthcare payment systems, 47 rural hospitals in Oklahoma are considered at risk of closing, about 20 of them immediately, due to financial instability exacerbated by the cuts in H.R.1. 

The implementation of the harmful changes in H.R.1 will accelerate after the midterms. While we may not be able to change the course of the federal government in time, we do have the ability to make our voices heard at the state level. What we can do, what we must do, is prevent our state legislature from making matters worse. 

In his list of legislative priorities for 2026, Governor Kevin Stitt called on the Legislature to “send a question to voters that would allow adjustments to Medicaid expansion”. Ever the obedient servants, they did just that, introducing bills and joint resolutions which would allow adjustments to Medicaid expansion and/or change eligibility.

Six bills that would affect SoonerCare, our state Medicaid program, have been passed in either the State House of Representatives or the State Senate and are on their way to the opposite chamber. 

Oklahoma voters worked hard to bring Medicaid expansion to Oklahoma through the citizen-initiated State Question 802. The Legislature works for us, not the Governor. Let’s be sure they know what we want. See our Calls-to-Action for HJR1067 and HB4440, the two most worrisome bills. They contain explanations of the bills, talking points and a link to find contact information for your Senator.

If the State of Oklahoma could afford to give a tax cut to those in the top tax bracket, as done last session with House Bill 2764, we can afford to keep Oklahomans healthy and productive. To do otherwise reflects poorly on our priorities.

Stay engaged. Learn more about SoonerCare, how Medicaid expansion benefits all Oklahomans, and what we need to do to KEEP OK COVERED.

Register here

We hope this program is proof of concept, and the beginning of a large-scale organizational effort. We want to take this program to rural communities all over the state. We want to be sure those communities, whose hospitals are most at risk, and who are most likely to lack access to over-the-air, print, or online information, are informed about the consequences of rolling back Medicaid expansion. If you are able, please consider a donation to support that work.