The political debate over Medicaid expansion in the Commonwealth directly impacts more than 400,000 Virginians stuck in the Medicaid gap, who earn either too much, or not enough, to qualify for private insurance and lack the resources to access affordable health services. Without Medicaid, many Virginians live in fear that illness or injury will result in bankruptcy.
We at Planned Parenthood Generation Action at the University of Virginia, a student organization of reproductive justice advocates affiliated with Planned Parenthood, support a clean expansion of Medicaid here in our Commonwealth. Planned Parenthood understands the importance of people who rely on Medicaid as their primary insurance, being able to affordably access expert care from the provider of their choice.
Medicaid is the largest source of reproductive health care coverage and provides critical preventive and primary reproductive health services to thousands of low-income women, men and young people. Defending and building upon protections for family planning services is crucial to ensuring that Virginians newly covered under the program are able to equitably access health care.
To provide the basic care that Virginians need to lead healthy lives, including birth control, STI testing/treatment and well-woman exams, Medicaid expansion should be implemented without work requirements or other restrictions. We hope our lawmakers will vote in favor of the hundreds of thousands of people who would benefit from access to affordable, expert reproductive health care without shame, judgment or worry.
Planned Parenthood Generation Action at UVA
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