Wisconsin Voter: “Rep. Derrick Van Orden betrayed Wisconsinites like me”

In a new opinion piece, a WI-03 voter and small business owner tells the story of how her family relied on Medicaid and SNAP to make ends meet, slamming Van Orden for his vote that “betrayed Wisconsinites like [her family] — all to pay for tax breaks for the wealthy few.”

REMINDER: Van Orden repeatedly told Wisconsinites that he’d never vote to cut Medicaid – a complete and total lie.

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• Growing up, there were times my family struggled to make ends meet. But thanks to Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), I never had to worry whether we’d have enough food or if we could afford to see a doctor. 
• The stability these programs brought us allowed me to just be a kid and to grow into a stable adult, confident enough to take risks like starting a business and buying a home.
• Medicaid and SNAP laid the groundwork for my future by providing things every child should have — healthcare and nutrition. That put me on track to fulfilling my dream — starting a small business called Eau Claire Outdoors. I’m grateful for these programs and for the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which enabled me to get affordable healthcare coverage as an adult when I had an emergency health situation that required immediate attention. When my husband was laid off and we lost our health insurance only weeks after I had a major surgery, the ACA was the only option we had. It was the only way I was able to access the many follow up procedures after my surgery.
• My life and ability to succeed were shaped by programs like Medicaid, the ACA, and SNAP. But attacks on these programs from Republicans in Congress will deny millions of other families the same kind of help, denying them the chance I got to succeed. The so-called “Big, Beautiful Bill” passed by my representative, Derrick Van Orden, is going to devastate families like mine.
• Millions of people will lose coverage altogether, and the number of uninsured people in Wisconsin will rise significantly, creating massive hardship.
• Yet, Republicans extended tax breaks for wealthy households and instituted new tax loopholes for large corporations. The bill cuts nearly a trillion out of healthcare and food assistance and adds more than $3 trillion to the deficit to extend Trump’s tax breaks that mainly benefit millionaires, billionaires, and Wall Street corporations.
• This law is a bad deal for average Americans and a betrayal of the values and priorities that most people support. I’m living proof that Medicaid and SNAP are good investments that help strengthen and build our country for the future. I can’t imagine what kind of adult I would be today without them, or without the Affordable Care Act, which provided me with health care when I needed it most. Rep. Derrick Van Orden betrayed Wisconsinites like me — all to pay for tax breaks for the wealthy few.

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