ICYMI Transcript: Rep. Bynum Holds Press Conference Highlighting Devastating Impact of Republicans’ Medicaid Cuts

Oregon City, OR – Yesterday, Congresswoman Janelle Bynum (OR-05) spoke at the Neighborhood Health Clinic in Oregon City following the passage of Republicans’ bill to cut Medicaid. Rep. Bynum was joined by Jeri Weeks, the CEO of Neighborhood Health, Penny Moore, the Director of Advancement, and Kristin Bendert M.D., the Provider Lead, who also spoke to the impact the cuts will have on Oregonians. Ahead of the press conference, Rep. Bynum also held a roundtable discussion with patients, advocates, and providers.

You can read a full transcript of Rep. Bynum’s remarks below:

Good morning everybody, thank you for coming out today. 

My name is Congresswoman Janelle Bynum, and I have the honor of representing Oregon’s Fifth Congressional District. 

I want to begin by thanking the Neighborhood Health Center of Oregon City Medical Clinic for hosting me for an extremely important conversation, and thank you to the advocates who have joined to share their stories. 

We are gathered here today because last week, my Republican colleagues passed the biggest cut to Medicaid in our nation’s history. 

Then they headed on over to the White House for a big Fourth of July bash, where they celebrated as President Trump signed the Big Ugly Bill into law. 

Now, this was particularly troubling because ahead of Independence Day, I received a message from a constituent who told me that this bill was effectively ending their independence. 

And I couldn’t agree more. 

We are a nation who prides ourselves on freedom and liberty. 

And to me, that means that everyone has a baseline level of access to healthcare. That no child, no veteran, no senior citizen is going hungry. That all women have access to the reproductive healthcare that they need. 

And this bill takes away so many of these things for so many across the country.  

The bill that President Trump and my Republicans colleagues are bragging about does nothing to help our healthcare crisis in this country. It benefits the top 1% while attacking the programs and services so many people rely on.

So let’s call it what it is: Trash. T-R-A-S-H. Trash.

Through the whole process, they knew it was trash. That’s why they held hearings in the middle of the night – they knew it wouldn’t be popular on primetime news. 

And that’s why my colleagues again tried to hold the final vote in the middle of the night – but were stopped. We stood up and we made sure that didn’t happen

And as a personal note, I will never forget this memory: I slept on the porch at the Capitol so that I would make sure I was there for the vote. 

And as we waited through the night, I was not going to allow them to put us aside and stand on the backs and necks of the American people and tell them they didn’t deserve healthcare. I slept on the porch to make sure I stood up for Oregonians.

My Republican colleagues, you know, they can strike through one number here and there, take a little bit from here and there on the budget.  

But they fail to realize that each of those numbers represents a person whose access to healthcare is now threatened, and billionaires now can have more money in their pockets. 

My colleagues who supported this legislation were ignoring how harmful it will be to their constituents. They were refusing to hear, and to share the stories of those who were impacted.  

What was also a very memorable point was when Leader Jeffries practiced civil disobedience and stood up for over eight hours to share the hundreds of stories of people who have been impacted by this bill already.

He spoke for over eight hours, giving voices to those who may have felt left behind. 

And over the past couple months, my office has received hundreds of messages from my constituents about how devastating this bill will be for them and their loved ones. 

Now last month, I spoke with a mom from my district on the phone about her beautiful daughter, Rose. 

Rose is seven-years-old, in first grade – I’m hoping she’s a rising second grader now – and she makes friends everywhere she goes. 

Rose was diagnosed with an ultra-rare genetic syndrome when she was three-and-a-half, and now uses a feeding tube and a wheelchair. 

Medicaid allows Rose to receive physical therapy, and thanks to this therapy, she’s starting to take steps. 

And for those of you who are parents, you know how special and precious it is to see your child walking – that’s real. We need more Roses.

And Janet, from Bend, has a grandson with autism who’s covered by Medicaid. His mother passed away from cancer a couple of years ago, and Medicaid has been a life-saver for the family. Janet wrote that “they will be thrown into poverty without Medicaid.” 

Faith, from Lake Oswego, is over 70 and depends on Social Security. Faith’s son has Huntington’s disease, and without Medicaid, Faith is worried about what will happen to his care. 

Callie, from Bend, is the parent to a teenager with Down syndrome. Callie’s daughter has been able to build independence through home and community-based services thanks to the Medicaid coverage.

In a message, Callie wrote: “These supports and services are not a luxury – they are essential.” 

A few weeks ago, I visited Thrive Oregon, a family-owned and operated caregiving agency that serves people experiencing disabilities in my district. 

Wrapped up in the trash bill is something called redetermination, a big word, but basically it requires people experiencing disabilities to re-apply for their benefits every six months.

So all of the paperwork that my colleagues want to cut out – the red tape they’re always interested in cutting out – they’ve just added this on the backs of average Americans.

When I spoke to the staff at Thrive, they said this additional barrier would make it harder for these members of our community to receive the care they need. 

And now I’m here, at Neighborhood Health Clinic, where I just had a chance to speak with leadership, providers, and patients about how they are feeling about the bill passing, and how they’re planning for the impact.

About how fewer people will be able to access the care they need. And again, I find that unacceptable. 

And friends, it’s not just Medicaid under attack. 

The bill also targets SNAP, a program that 42 million Americans use to help put food on the table. 

In our district, SNAP cuts could impact 85,000 people. 

Also to add insult to injury, at the last minute, Senate Republicans added a measure in the budget to completely defund Planned Parenthood in its current state. 

Women go to Planned Parenthood to receive cancer screenings, contraception, you name it. And now, those services might be harder to find. 

So with this bill, again, against their so-called stated priorities, Republicans picked winners and losers. 

They rewarded billionaires while leaving those in need behind. 

They weren’t thinking about how to make things better for everyone in our community, it was just for the top 1%. 

Instead of creating pathways to success, they put up more barriers. 

The fight for Medicaid is far from over, but I pledge to be here every step of the way. 

So I will fight back in every committee room, courtroom, and newsroom, against this cruel, harmful, and reckless agenda. 

Thank you for being here today.

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