“Help is on the Way.” Little Lobbyists Thank President Biden and Democratic Lawmakers for the American Rescue Plan
March 12, 2021
As we mark one year of the Covid19 pandemic this week and mourn the loss of more than 535,000 Americans, Senate and House Democrats worked together to pass a robust package of targeted and timely relief for Americans.
People with complex medical needs and disabilities and their families have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. We are grateful President Biden’s first major legislation, the American Rescue Plan, addresses some of the needs of the disability community, including increased funding for Medicaid, particularly Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) and also strengthens the Affordable Care Act by significantly lowering health insurance premiums for millions of families, expands Medicaid, and cuts the child poverty rate in half.
The American Rescue Plan (ARP) includes over $12.7 billion in the form of a targeted 10% increase in FMAP (federal matching funds for state Medicaid programs) for HCBS, which help people stay in their homes and communities and out of institutions which have proven even more deadly during this pandemic. This funding is a critically important first step to help build up a system that was already struggling and has been seriously strained over the past year. Too many families cannot access the care they need to ensure their children and loved ones can stay safe at home and not be forced into institutional care in the midst of this crisis.
This package also includes a substantial expansion of the Affordable Care Act with expanded and increased subsidies for millions of families and includes funding to expand Medicaid and help to ensure that every family has access to the health care they need during this crisis and in the future.
Through a combination of $1400 stimulus checks and an enhanced child tax credit of up to $3600 per child, the ARP will cut child poverty in half. More children, including those with complex medical needs and disabilities will have a better chance to survive and thrive. In a country as wealthy as ours, no should go to bed hungry or in fear of losing their home. This legislation brings us much closer to making that hope a reality.
We look forward to building upon this legislation to continue creating more equitable policies that support the full inclusion of people with disabilities in all aspects of the Nation’s recovery from this terrible virus and beyond.
Photograph of a podium with the Little Lobbyists logo with the US Capitol Building behind it on a sunny summer day.