Healthcare
Pelosi, Rowe-Finkbeiner: We can fix health care, but Trump chooses Iran
Republicans doubled down on extreme health care cuts during an affordability crisis to pay for even more tax breaks for people who don’t need them. But we can reverse that
Nancy Pelosi and Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner
Opinion contributors
July 9, 2026, 6:03 a.m. ET
Families don’t need another report to tell them health care is becoming more unaffordable, but the latest data confirms what we’re already feeling in our wallets: Less than half of Americans can now afford health care
Wondering what’s happening? We have answers
Republicans triggered a nationwide health care crisis by slashing $1 trillion from Medicaid in their 2025 reconciliation bill and failing to extend the Affordable Care Act premium tax credits
But instead of fixing the crisis they created, in June the Republican-controlled Congress passedanother reconciliation bill that, along with the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, poured more than $240 billion into militarized immigration enforcement without guardrails to protect our communities – while ignoring the financial realities facing America’s families
This health care crisis is not a question of reover Medicaid for about 30 million people. And the daily cost of the war in Iran alone could cover the daily health care costs of the 16 million people expected to lose Medicaid – and still cover Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for all 41 million Americans who rely on it
Again, the re
Across America, working families are being pushed to the breaking point by a health care crisis that grows worse by the day. The consequences are devastating
Just take the direct impact of the cuts in the 2025 reconciliation package: While about 16 million Americans are expected to lose their health insurance by 2034 because of those Medicaid cuts, that’s just part of the negative consequences
At the same time, rising Affordable Care Act premiums are pricing families out of coverage altogether. Early 2026 data already shows ACA enrollment dropped by 13%, which is nearly 3 million people, with some experts projecting a 20% drop – meaning roughly 5 million fewer people with coverage and soaring premiums for 22 million families
Even as families pay more, services are worsening as hospitals struggle under the weight of these cuts
More than 15 million could lose health care thanks to Republican cuts
To be clear, taking an axe to Medicaid is taking an axe to the heart of America: our children. More than 35 million children – nearly half of all children in our country – receive their health care through Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program, or CHIP
Medicaid also covers more than 40% of births in our country, protecting both mothers and babies at the most vulnerable moment in their lives
America’s health care crisis will only deepen as the Republican cuts take hold over the next decade, with the most severe impacts beginning in 2027
Experts warn that about 15 million additional people could lose coverage in the years ahead. Even families with employer-sponsored insurance are not spared
Across the country, families are being forced into impossible choices: health care or groceries, prescriptions or rent, gas in the car or a doctor’s visit
At the same time, the very health care system families rely on is under strain. Hospitals, clinics, nursing homes and maternity wards are cutting services, laying off staff or closing altogether
One in 7 Americans depend on a rural hospital for care, and closures are accelerating – forcing patients to rely on air ambulances or travel hours for basic services
In urban areas, more than 440 hospitals serving 6.6 million patients are at risk of closing or reducing services, with a quarter of hospitals in five states in jeopardy
For pregnant women and new mothers, these closures are not just devastating – they are dangerous. When a maternity ward closes, we lose more than convenience, we lose safety:
- Progress made under Medicaid expansion is under direct threat of imminent reversal.
- Maternal care deserts now exist in more than 35% of counties, including 56% of rural counties.
- The United States already has the highest maternal mortality rate among developed nations, with Black women three times more likely to die from a pregnancy-related cause than White women.
Americans are concerned about health care costs. Trump doesn’t care
This is not acceptable. It is outrageous
We are living through a crisis that feels like a real-life episode of “The Pitt” – because Republican leaders are prioritizing ballrooms over emergency rooms. That is not what the American people want, and it is not what they deserve. One-third of Americans now report cutting back on basic necessities just to afford health care
We choose what to fund as a nation – and most Americans prioritize their health care, with 7 in 10 adults saying they are very concerned about their health care costs
Let us be clear: The steep hike in health care didn’t happen by accident
President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress doubled down on extreme cuts to health care during an affordability crisis to pay for even more tax breaks for people who don’t need them, as well as for separating families, human rights abuses and terrifying hardworking immigrants – people essential to our care workforce, our economy and our future. Our nation needs a safe and orderly immigration process that balances compassion and security, not cuts to health care and not cruelty
Despite the political chaos, solutions are still possible. Our nation can reverse course by reversing the cuts
But make no mistake, reversing the cuts is going to take our voices, our persistence, our insistence and our votes. In this increasing climate of voter intimidation and gerrymandering, double-check your voter registration and make a plan to vote with friends. Call your members of Congress and urge them to reverse the massive cuts that Republican leaders made to health care, permanently extend the Affordable Care Act premium tax credits and proactively pass improved health care access
America’s families need universal access to affordable health care. They need paid family and medical leave. They need access to healthy food, affordable childcare, and quality care for aging loved ones and people with disabilities. These are not luxuries – they are the foundation of a strong economy and a just society
These are the policies that will lift families up, strengthen our workforce and restore dignity to everyday life. These are the policies that will end the affordability crisis driven by these cruel and unjust cuts
In the United States of America, what we are experiencing is not just a policy failure. It is a moral failure. And we must act now before it’s too late
Rep. Nancy Pelosi is speaker emerita of the U.S. House of Representatives.Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner is executive director of MomsRising, a 3.7 million-member organization working to open avenues for moms and families to build good lives and thrive
