Why We’re Endorsing Measure 101 – Yes for Healthcare!
by Matt Newell-Ching
No one should be forced to choose between going to the doctor and paying for food.
That is why Partners for Hunger-Free Oregon is joining over 100 organizations — including doctors, firefighters and teachers, AARP, local hospitals and families across the state — endorsing Ballot Measure 101.
Measure 101 protects healthcare coverage for one in four Oregonians, including 400,000 kids. No matter where you live or work or what your job is, you should be able to see a doctor or nurse and get medication when you’re sick and it shouldn’t bankrupt you. Measure 101 holds down costs and is an important step to make basic healthcare affordable and accessible to every Oregonian.
In 2015, clients at food pantries across Oregon were asked what would make food assistance less necessary. Compared to 2012, the percentage of clients reporting that health care costs were a primary reason was reduced by half. That reduction is largely due to Oregon’s adoption of Medicaid expansion in 2014 – the part of the Affordable Care Act that extends health coverage to working poor families.
Whether you work in an office or at a construction site, in sales or at a coffee shop, you shouldn’t be kept up at night thinking about whether to seek a medical treatment or whether to get groceries. Your income shouldn’t determine whether you can get the care you need.
Voting Yes on Measure 101 means:
- All Oregon Kids will have healthcare
- 95 percent of Oregonians will have access to healthcare
- 210,000 Oregonians will see lower premiums
Food insecurity in Oregon recently saw it’s largest single-year drop in twenty years. Fewer Oregonians today face the impossible choice between health care and basic nutrition. While far too many Oregonians still experience hunger and food insecurity, ensuring that Oregonians have access to health coverage is a moral imperative.
Measure 101 helps all parts of Oregon. Hunger is higher in rural areas, and in some rural counties, more than a third of families rely on Medicaid. Without Measure 101, Medicaid funding would be slashed, impacting the health families and local economies. What’s more, in early 2017, 20 rural Oregon counties were at risk of losing coverage options on the individual insurance market. Thanks to Measure 101 funding that’s dedicated to stabilizing insurance premiums, every Oregon county now has at least one available insurance option.
If Measure 101 does not pass, the results would be disastrous for Oregonians. State funding for healthcare will be cut by between $210 and $320 million, resulting in the loss of potentially $5 billion in federal funding. Oregon families who rely on Medicaid – including 400,000 children, seniors and people with disabilities – face the prospect of losing healthcare benefits or coverage altogether.
We must not turn back the clock.
Ballots will be mailed to voters in early January and must be returned by 8pm on January 23rd. We encourage you to vote “Yes for Healthcare” – Yes on Measure 101 – and invite you to get involved.
Get Involved and Learn More
- Share Your Health Care Story
- What is Measure 101?
- Answers to your questions about ballot measure 101 and the healthcare of Oregonians (OCPP)
- Get Involved
Related Posts
January 3, 2018
Happy New Year from PHFO!
What are you looking forward to in 2018? What do you enjoy about your work? Before closing for a…
October 3, 2017
Cambia Health Solutions: Partnerships to End Childhood Hunger!
Every year when school starts up, Oregon’s kids are back learning, and for many, enjoying the most…
May 23, 2016
Watch our video: who we are and why we exist
In 2016, Partners for a Hunger-Free Oregon celebrates 10 years of ending hunger in Oregon!