Salinas Meets with Seniors in Salem, Calls Out Republican Budget Bill’s Cuts to Medicare and Long-Term Care

Salem, OR - Congresswoman Andrea Salinas (OR-06) hosted a Senior Issues Forum at Center 50+ in Salem as the third stop on her affordability tour of Oregon's Sixth Congressional District. The event focused on affordability issues that matter most to seniors, especially those on a fixed income. Rep. Salinas discussed her efforts to protect and strengthen Social Security, Medicare, and long-term care amid rising everyday costs and the financial pressures caused by cuts in Republicans' Big, Ugly Bill.

"Seniors in Oregon were promised that if they work hard and pay into Social Security and Medicare, then they'll be able to retire with dignity. Trump is breaking that promise," said Rep. Salinas. "Trump's affordability crisis is squeezing people on fixed incomes, and the Big, Ugly Bill makes it worse. It cuts Medicare, guts Medicaid-funded long-term care, and slashes SNAP. At the same time, Republicans are handing tax breaks to billionaires. Seniors who spent decades working and paying into the system deserve care with dignity."

H.R. 1, Republicans' budget bill, cuts Medicare payments to doctors and plans, blocks low-income seniors from accessing programs that lower their premiums and prescription drug costs, caps Medicaid eligibility for nursing home care, and delays minimum staffing standards at long-term care facilities until 2035. Around 68 percent of Medicare beneficiaries in OR-06 are enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans, meaning provider payment cuts hit the majority of seniors in the district directly.

Rep. Salinas used the event to highlight several bills she supports to protect seniors' benefits, including:

• Social Security Expansion Act(H.R. 1700), which extends Social Security solvency for 75 years, increases benefits by $2,400 per year, and updates the cost-of-living adjustment to better reflect seniors' actual spending.
• Improving Seniors' Timely Access to Care Act(H.R. 3514), which reforms Medicare Advantage prior authorization so insurance companies cannot delay or override care a doctor has already recommended.
• Medicare Dental, Vision, and Hearing Act(H.R. 2045), which expands Medicare to cover dental, vision, and hearing care seniors currently pay for out of pocket.
• You Earned It, You Keep It Act(H.R. 2909), which eliminates federal income taxes on Social Security benefits.

Today's event was the third stop on Rep. Salinas' affordability tour of Oregon's Sixth Congressional District. Previous events in Rep. Salinas' affordability tour included grocery shoppingwith a constituent to discuss her plans to reduce the cost of groceries and speaking with parentsabout the cost of childcare and her plans to help make it more affordable.

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