Issue: Medicaid Expansion

Virginia wants you to join her in protecting health coverage in Alabama

By Whit Sides
A woman sitting and smiling.
Virginia found a good job and health insurance that meets her needs after moving back to Alabama last year. But Congress is considering legislation that could send health care costs soaring for her and tens of thousands of other Alabamians. (Photo by Whit Sides)

Virginia would say things have been going well since moving back home to Birmingham a year ago – steady even. She said consistency has been key in staying healthy when life takes on unexpected changes.

And Virginia has had to navigate some unexpected changes recently. 

After graduating from Mountain Brook High School and attending the University of Montevallo, she got married and followed her military spouse out of state. Virginia became a federal employee on the base where they were stationed, working in health care administration.

One of the benefits of being in a military family was having health coverage through TRICARE. That allowed her to stay on top of her mental and physical health.

“I’ve been treated for depression, anxiety and ADHD since I was very young, about 14, so it’s important that I regularly go to counseling. It’s important to find medication that works and stick with it,” Virginia said. “The reason I’ve done so well with my mental health is because I’ve had access to great health coverage throughout my life.”

When she and her spouse decided to separate, Virginia moved home. Then she learned she had lost her TRICARE health coverage in November 2024. 

“I knew I had to be in Birmingham. It’s where I know people. It’s where my family is,” she said. “I wasn’t in the best space emotionally, but I knew if I could make it home, I could deal with whatever was next once I got there.”

Reconnecting with the community

Virginia began her job search the day she arrived back in Alabama. She soon started working at a grocery store. The work was brutal, with long hours on her feet and only 10-minute breaks. But she said she was grateful for the support system that helped her earn money and become plugged into her community again.

“When I told my friends I was looking for a job, so many people were incredibly helpful, and that’s how I heard about the navigators at Enroll Alabama,” she said.

Virginia mentioned to her roommate that she was living without insurance. Her roommate then suggested visiting healthcare.gov to explore the Marketplace created under the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

An enrollment navigator walked Virginia through the process. With her recent income and household changes, together they discovered that she was eligible for premium tax credits that reduced the cost of her monthly health insurance premiums.

“I did a lot of research to make sure the plan I chose covered most of what I needed to cover my regular medications and doctors and everything,” she said. “And honestly, it wasn’t the cheapest plan, but I could afford it now with the help.”

Shortly after Virginia enrolled in her new plan, she received more good news: She was offered a job working at a family-owned office downtown.

“I work at a small local office now, and the reason I could accept that job is because I already had insurance,” she said.

The budget debate becomes personal

Since moving back, Virginia said, she feels like starting over in Birmingham was the right decision. She has plugged into several social organizations and is making an effort to become involved in causes she was passionate about locally.

That’s when Virginia found out the U.S. House recently passed a budget reconciliation bill (HR 1) with proposed health care cuts that might affect her directly.

“I follow the news, and I’ve seen everything to do with the budget bill for a while now,” she said. “And understandably, a lot of the discussion focuses on Medicaid and Medicare, which is a really big issue. But sometimes navigating health policy is hard when I’m like, ‘OK, if Medicaid’s getting cut and Medicare is getting cut, does that include funding for the Affordable Care Act?”

A woman standing and smiling.
Virginia became more engaged in health care advocacy after attending a town hall that Alabama Arise co-hosted in Birmingham. She urges Alabamians to contact their lawmakers and tell them how proposed health care cuts would harm their families and communities. (Photo by Whit Sides)

Alabama Arise and Birmingham Indivisible co-hosted a community town hall at East Lake United Methodist Church on May 31 in Birmingham. Panelists discussed proposed federal cuts to food assistance and health coverage.

Virginia was one of the nearly 100 people in attendance that day. She heard Debbie Smith, Arise’s Cover Alabama campaign director, break down what HR 1 could mean for Alabamians who receive subsidies to help pay for their ACA plans. For people like Virginia.

“Someone on the panel said that there would be up to 75% cut of the premium tax credits,” Virginia said. “My heart sank, you know? I put my head in my head in my hands and may have literally gasped, ‘Oh, no!’”

How federal cuts would undermine health care across Alabama

The budget plan now moving through Congress would make health care more expensive and less accessible for people across Alabama and nationwide. One way it would do that is to allow enhanced tax credits for ACA Marketplace coverage to expire.

This expiration would cause out-of-pocket premium payments to increase by more than 75% on average for people enrolled in Marketplace plans, according to KFF. In Alabama, that increase would be 93% on average. And in a dozen other states, people would see their premium payments more than double on average. Most of them, like Alabama, have not expanded Medicaid to cover adults with low incomes.

The most significant Marketplace premium increases likely would hit older adults and enrollees with lower incomes, according to KFF. And those higher costs would play a huge role in driving up Alabama’s uninsured rate.

About 190,000 Alabamians would lose health coverage under the proposed new cuts and barriers to Medicaid and ACA coverage. The cuts also would increase the financial strain on many rural hospitals and clinics and ultimately would drive up health care costs for everyone, no matter what type of coverage they have. And all of the cuts would help finance tax breaks for wealthy households and highly profitable corporations.

For Virginia, the health care cuts would be personal. She said she receives close to $300 a month from the tax credits toward her health coverage costs.

“It’s only $3,100 a year, which is not a lot to these people working on the bill, but like, come on, man,” she said. “You’re going to take that from us, when it’s a 75% difference? That’s such a huge deal.”

Speaking out for herself and others

Virginia said she understands that our country needs a budget from year to year. But she said she hopes Alabama’s elected officials reject health care cuts that would harm so many people, including her.

“I’ve been making calls to lawmakers about other issues since before I even knew I was impacted,” Virginia said. “And so now I just start my day by calling [Sen.] Katie Britt and calling [Sen. Tommy] Tuberville. If I leave a voicemail, I call him ‘Coach,’ but sometimes, people actually answer and I have to work through my social anxiety.”

Virginia encourages anyone who might feel overwhelmed by advocacy to take it one step at a time, and to reach out to their lawmakers with their own story.

“I fundamentally disagree with everyone right now who says that it doesn’t matter if you make a call or show up at a town hall,” she said. “Because if we all say, ‘Nothing I do matters’ and we all sit here and do nothing, then we’re really going to be in trouble.”

About Alabama Arise and Cover Alabama

Whit Sides is the storyteller for Alabama Arise, a statewide, member-led organization advancing public policies to improve the lives of Alabamians who are marginalized by poverty. Arise’s membership includes faith-based, community, nonprofit and civic groups, grassroots leaders and individuals from across Alabama. Email: whit@alarise.org.

Arise is a founding member of the Cover Alabama coalition. Cover Alabama is a nonpartisan alliance of advocacy groups, businesses, community organizations, consumer groups, health care providers and religious congregations advocating for Alabama to provide quality, affordable health coverage to its residents and implement a sustainable health care system.

Federal budget bill threatens health coverage for 190,000 Alabamians

By Debbie Smith

A bill passed by the U.S. House would put the health of thousands of Alabamians — and the state’s fragile health care system — at serious risk.

Here is what’s at stake for Alabama:

190,000 Alabamians could lose coverage

The bill would make cuts to Medicaid and would raise premiums through the Health Insurance Marketplace. As a result, thousands of Alabamians may lose their health insurance, and many would be forced to skip medications, delay care or go to the ER in crisis.

$1.14 billion hit to Alabama’s economy

Raising premiums by letting enhanced Affordable Care Act (ACA) premium subsidies expire would shrink Alabama’s economy by $1.14 billion and cost the state 10,000 jobs in 2026.

Blocks Medicaid expansion funding

The bill would eliminate $619 million in federal funds set aside to help Alabama expand Medicaid. This would deny Alabama the chance to cover at least 200,000 more residents – including veterans, college students, caregivers and more.

Pushes Alabama’s health care system closer to collapse

Alabama’s health care infrastructure is already stretched thin – with at least 20 rural hospitals already at risk of closing. This bill would put more than $400 million per year in state Medicaid provider taxes at risk. As a result, our state lawmakers could be forced to cut coverage or raise new taxes to fill the gap.

Raises health care costs for everyone

When people lose coverage, hospitals and providers still deliver care — but with no reimbursement. That means higher health care costs for everyone — no matter what type of coverage you have.

Medicaid helped save her daughter’s life. Angelica wants it to be there for other Alabamians, too

By Whit Sides
A woman and her two daughters have a photo shoot near what appears to be a creek. The mother, in a red dress, is bending down to kiss her daughter, in a yellow dress.
Irondale resident Angelica McCain plays with her daughters near the Cahaba River in fall 2024. Years of living in Alabama’s health coverage gap and advocating for her children’s health care needs motivated her to become an advocate for affordable health coverage for every Alabamian. (Photo courtesy of Angelica McCain)

By the time Angelica McCain was 17, she had moved out of her family’s home in St. Clair County, east of Birmingham. Since then, she has worked full time in the service industry, where health coverage never comes easily.

Now a single mother of two living in Irondale in eastern Jefferson County, McCain finds herself in a familiar struggle. She is fighting to ensure her children have access to the same Medicaid coverage that helped her growing up.

“I was on Medicaid with my brothers,” McCain said. “My mom worked three jobs, my dad didn’t work much, and that was the only way we could have health care.”

That early experience shaped her perspective and fueled her advocacy today. Working in the service industry for much of her adult life – where health insurance is rarely offered – Angelica often falls into Alabama’s health coverage gap. People in the gap have incomes too high to qualify for Alabama Medicaid, but too low to afford private coverage.

Angelica had coverage during her pregnancies, only to lose it shortly after giving birth.

“Medicaid would cover me while I was pregnant, then drop me afterward,” she said. “It’d be great if our country cared about parents after the babies are born.”

Alabama lawmakers in 2022 extended the postpartum Medicaid coverage period to one year after childbirth, up from the previous cutoff of just 60 days. It was a step in the right direction – but it wasn’t enough to ensure families can get the health care they need.

The life-saving importance of Medicaid coverage

A woman and her two daughters have a photo shoot near what appears to be a creek. They are holding hands.
Irondale resident Angelica McCain smiles for a photo with her children near the Cahaba River in fall 2024. Medicaid coverage paid for live-saving cancer treatment for her older daughter last year. (Photo courtesy of Angelica McCain)

In February, Angelica was able to obtain health insurance for herself for the first time in her adult life through the Marketplace created under the Affordable Care Act. She said it’s not cheap, but she’s got to take care of herself to be around for her daughters.

A recent health scare demonstrated just how important health insurance is for families like Angelica’s. Medicaid coverage proved life-saving when Angelica’s daughter needed major cancer surgery last year.

“First of all, I thought, ‘Oh my God, is Medicaid even gonna cover this because of how big it is?’” she said. “But it covered everything. They did it all. That saved me from being like $200,000 in debt from five days in the hospital.”

Her daughter, now 10, fully recovered. But Angelica said the experience reaffirmed the critical role that Medicaid plays for Alabama families, especially in rural communities.

Tired of the status quo

Angelica is outspoken about the misconceptions and stigmas that often surround federal programs serving Alabama families. She said that in the past, more than half of her paycheck would be spent on private insurance. She said her sister is still in the same situation, facing the choice between paying for groceries or health care.

“I get very, very tired of the status quo,” Angelica said. “I’ve worked in this state for 17 years, and I still didn’t have health care to show for it. It’s not about laziness. It’s about survival.”

A woman and her two daughters have a photo shoot near what appears to be a creek. They are laughing and playing in the water.
Irondale resident Angelica McCain plays with her children near the Cahaba River in fall 2024. Angelica works full time in the service industry and spent many years living in the health coverage gap, earning too much to qualify for Alabama Medicaid but not enough to afford private insurance. (Photo courtesy of Angelica McCain)

Angelica said she often feels like leaders in Washington, D.C., and Montgomery can’t relate to folks like her. When House Speaker Mike Johnson recently claimed to reporters that many young Americans on Medicaid are just “playing video games all day,” it struck a nerve with Angelica.

“He must be out of his mind,” she said bluntly. “They have no idea what’s happening to working-class folks underneath them.”

‘That emotional weight is crushing’

For Alabamians like Angelica, Medicaid is not just a lifeline. It’s a matter of dignity for working families. But the program faces numerous threats at the federal level.

The U.S. House voted 215-214 in May for a budget bill that would cut $800 billion from Medicaid and Marketplace coverage over the next decade. The bill now awaits Senate consideration. If these cuts are enacted, health coverage could become more expensive or inaccessible for tens of thousands of Alabamians.

The bill also would remove additional federal incentives for states to expand Medicaid to cover adults with low incomes. Alabama is one of 10 states yet to expand Medicaid, leaving nearly 200,000 people in the state’s health coverage gap.

Medicaid is an essential part of Alabama’s health care infrastructure. More than 1 million Alabamians – almost all of whom are children, older adults, or people with disabilities – receive their health coverage through Medicaid.

“Children… that’s my heart,” Angelica said. “And it breaks my heart to think there are kids out there who will potentially die, and then families will go under. That emotional weight is crushing.”

If Medicaid were to face cuts or further restrictions, Angelica said her family’s most basic needs could be jeopardized. When times are already tough, she said she doesn’t know if families like hers can take another hit.

“I’d fear their teeth falling out. I’d fear not being able to get my daughter glasses. And I’d fear going into debt just trying to keep them healthy,” she said.

An empowered advocate gets results

In February, Angelica accepted an invitation to share her story at an advocacy day that Cover Alabama and the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network co-hosted at the State House in Montgomery. There, she met other Alabamians living in the coverage gap. She also spoke at a news conference, where her message to legislators was simple: Expand Medicaid and stop targeting vulnerable communities who are just trying to get by.

A woman speaks at a podium in a crowded room during a press conference or public event.
Irondale resident Angelica McCain (center, standing behind the lectern) speaks about her experience in Alabama’s health coverage gap during a news conference co-hosted by Cover Alabama and the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network on Feb. 27 at the State House in Montgomery. Speaking at the event and meeting with lawmakers inspired Angelica to deepen her advocacy for affordable health coverage for every Alabamian. (Photo by Whit Sides)

Angelica met with state lawmakers to discuss how her family and others would suffer under a bill that originally would have removed thousands of children from their Medicaid coverage by placing unaffordable requirements on parents with low incomes. Thanks in part to Angelica’s in-person advocacy, the bill’s sponsor agreed to remove the most concerning language from the plan. The bill ultimately did not pass. (Read more here about Angelica’s crucial role in advocating against this legislation.)

Ever since, Angelica said, she has felt more empowered to share her story and help make a difference for working families and people with low incomes across Alabama.

“There are so many people that benefit from Medicaid who don’t fit the stereotype,” she said. “We live in rural Alabama, and we live in cities. We’re white, Black, it doesn’t matter. They’re people like me, just trying to do our best for our kids.”

About Alabama Arise and Cover Alabama

Whit Sides is the Cover Alabama storyteller for Alabama Arise, a statewide, member-led organization advancing public policies to improve the lives of Alabamians who are marginalized by poverty. Arise’s membership includes faith-based, community, nonprofit and civic groups, grassroots leaders and individuals from across Alabama. Email: whit@alarise.org.

Arise is a founding member of the Cover Alabama coalition. Cover Alabama is a nonpartisan alliance of advocacy groups, businesses, community organizations, consumer groups, health care providers and religious congregations advocating for Alabama to provide quality, affordable health coverage to its residents and implement a sustainable health care system.

Federal funding cuts would increase hunger and hardship across Alabama

By Carol Gundlach

Congress is advancing a cruel proposal to take away food assistance, health coverage and other vital services from millions of Americans who struggle to afford basic needs.

Why? To give huge tax cuts to the wealthiest people in the country. The bill’s proposed $1.1 trillion of cuts to food assistance and health care over the next decade would be equal to the amount of tax cuts it would provide for the wealthiest 2% of households, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

Congressional leaders are pushing the bill through budget reconciliation, a process that bypasses the Senate filibuster and allows legislation to pass with a simple majority vote. That process is ongoing and fluid. The U.S. House voted 215-214 for the bill in late May. By the time you read this, the Senate may have made many changes, some for the better and others for the worse.

The specifics may change, but the bill’s brutal core will remain the same. It will increase suffering for millions of Americans with low incomes to finance tax breaks for wealthy households and highly profitable corporations.

An existential threat to SNAP in Alabama

Alabama likely would feel the worst effects from proposed cuts to food assistance under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). SNAP helps more than 42 million people nationwide and nearly 800,000 Alabamians put food on the table.

Now, Congress and the White House are threatening those families’ meals in an effort to reduce taxes for billionaires. Three major proposed SNAP changes would have devastating effects on Alabama.

(1) The bill likely would require Alabama to pay hundreds of millions of dollars more for SNAP benefits and administrative costs. The federal government has funded 100% of SNAP benefits for decades. Under the new cost shift, Alabama would become responsible for a projected $258 million or more in direct benefit costs annually, plus an additional $35 million a year in administrative costs.

The General Fund is already facing increasing costs and often stagnant revenues. There is real reason to be concerned that the Legislature can’t, or wouldn’t, commit this money. In that case, Alabama would be forced to cut SNAP benefits significantly – or even eliminate the program altogether.

(2) Congress also is considering expanding SNAP current time limits and work verification red tape for an additional 165,000 Alabamians, including parents with children over age 7. A change of this magnitude would create additional burdens for Alabama’s already stretched child care and child welfare systems. And it could leave thousands of Alabama children and families without food.

(3) Congress is considering limiting future growth in the value of SNAP benefits. Over time, this would reduce benefits for nearly 800,000 SNAP participants in Alabama, including more than 300,000 children, even as food costs continue to grow.

The economic devastation of SNAP cuts

SNAP cuts not only would hurt Alabama’s people. They also would damage Alabama’s economy. More than 5,000 Alabama stores are authorized to accept SNAP payments, and for many, it’s a large part of their business. This is particularly true in small towns and rural communities where retail is a major source of jobs and tax revenue.

Every $1 in SNAP benefits can generate $1.50 in economic activity in local communities, the USDA estimates. Deep SNAP cuts could force layoffs or closures at grocery stores and other retailers across our state. A reduction or loss of SNAP benefits is a threat to our economy and the local communities where we all live and shop.

Threats to Medicaid and ACA coverage

The bill also would make health care inaccessible or less affordable for tens of millions of Americans, including tens of thousands of Alabamians. It would allow enhanced Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies to expire, increasing premium costs for marketplace plans.

In addition, the bill would create new barriers that would limit Alabama’s ability to manage its own Medicaid program in the future. For example, the legislation would eliminate the federal incentives set aside to help states like Alabama cover the first two years of Medicaid expansion.

Alabama is one of 10 states yet to expand Medicaid to cover adults with low incomes. As a result, nearly 200,000 Alabamians are in the health coverage gap, earning too much to qualify for Medicaid but too little to afford private insurance.

The bill also would freeze provider taxes at current levels. This would ban Alabama from increasing fees on nursing homes, ambulance providers and others to fund Medicaid costs – even if legislators find that move necessary to sustain the program or expand coverage later.

Now is the time to speak out

It is not too late for us, as Alabamians and Alabama Arise members, to raise our voices against this dreadful bill. Congress is hearing the opposition from people back home, and that pressure continues to grow. The bill’s margin for passage is tight, and only a few votes can make a difference.

Please call on your U.S. representative and senators to say “no” to deep cuts to food assistance and health care. Ask them to focus instead on legislation that advances tax equity and meets essential health and nutrition needs in our communities.

HB 177: A case study in Alabama Arise advocacy

By Whitney Washington

 

Text for this infographic is in text of post.

Alabama Arise successfully leaped into action this year to defend health coverage for thousands of children. In February 2025, Rep. Ben Robbins, R-Sylacauga, introduced HB 177, which would have required that a child covered by Medicaid be placed on a non-custodial parent’s employer-provided health insurance when available, regardless of whether the parent could afford it. The bill also would have required Alabama Medicaid to sue parents who did not do so for payments made on the child’s behalf. Arise went into action.

Policy analysis: Looking for the devil in the details

After reading HB 177’s worrisome language, Arise senior policy analyst Carol Gundlach and other staff got to work on assessing its repercussions. As written, HB 177 would have:

  • Required Alabama Medicaid to sue many parents.
  • Put many parents who were already struggling into medical debt.
  • Forced some victims of domestic violence into contact with their abusers.

Lawmakers turn to Arise for answers

On Feb. 19, the House Ways and Means General Fund Committee debated HB 177. Arise’s Robyn Hyden spoke in opposition. 

“One example … is a friend [whose] take-home pay is $600 a week. … So she could opt in to pay for health insurance through her employer, [but] it would take more than one-third of her paycheck,” she said. 

Many committee members raised questions about the bill’s potential harms. Acting committee chair Rep. Chris Blackshear, R-Phenix City, urged the sponsor to collaborate with Arise regarding our concerns.

Our members take action

At Cover Alabama’s advocacy day, Irondale resident Angelica McCain – equipped and encouraged by Arise – shared her story of being a single mother in the health coverage gap.

“There are so many people that benefit from Medicaid who don’t fit the stereotype,” McCain said. “We live in rural Alabama, and we live in cities. We’re white, Black, it doesn’t matter. They’re people like me, just trying to do our best for our kids.”

Later that day, she spoke directly to Robbins to explain how HB 177 would harm her family. In all, nearly 100 of our advocates visited their lawmakers that day.

Harm mitigation: Advocating for amendments

Arise continued speaking with legislators about HB 177. Robbins ultimately proposed a substitute version that removed some of the bill’s most harmful impacts. The substitute added an affordability test and clarified that the insurance requirements would not apply to custodial parents.

A quiet but mighty win

Sometimes a legislative win is obvious: A good bill is enacted into law. Other times, it looks more like stopping a bad bill or mitigating the harm it would cause. In the case of HB 177, Arise identified a bill that would have hurt vulnerable Alabamians. Then we successfully advocated to make it less harmful – and ultimately, the bill died.

This is just one example of the kind of critical legislative victories that Arise regularly secures for families across Alabama. Your advocacy and support of our work makes it all possible!

U.S. House budget bill would hammer struggling Alabama families

By Chris Sanders

The U.S. House voted 215-214 Thursday for a budget bill that would make basic needs like food and health care more expensive for millions of families through severe cuts to food assistance, Medicaid and other human services. These funding cuts would finance efforts to renew or expand tax cuts for wealthy people and highly profitable corporations.

Alabama Arise executive director Robyn Hyden issued the following statement Friday in response:

“It’s wrong to hurt people who are struggling to help people who are already doing well. But the U.S. House just voted for a budget bill that would do exactly that.

“This cruel budget plan would take away food assistance, health coverage and other vital services from hundreds of thousands of Alabamians who struggle to afford basic needs. And it would make those cuts in service of slashing taxes for billionaires and highly profitable corporations. The bill’s $1.1 trillion of cuts to food assistance and health care over the next decade would be equal to the amount of tax breaks it would provide for the wealthiest 2% of households.

Text at the top: Alabama Arise news release: U.S. House budget bill would hammer struggling Alabama families. In the image below, a mother looks at a long receipt in the foreground. In the background, a father opens grocery bags on a kitchen table while their two young children stand to either side of him.

Threats to nutrition, health care

“Alabama likely would feel the worst effects from cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. SNAP benefits have been fully federally funded for decades, but this bill would change that. As a result of this cost shift to states, Alabama would be on the hook to pay nearly $300 million a year in direct benefits and additional administrative costs.

“There is real reason to worry that the Legislature can’t or wouldn’t provide this additional funding. In that case, Alabama would be forced to cut SNAP benefits significantly – or even eliminate the program altogether for nearly 800,000 participants statewide. These cuts would send hunger soaring and devastate the economy in local communities across Alabama.

“The House bill also would make health care inaccessible or less affordable for hundreds of thousands of Alabamians. It would allow enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies to expire, increasing premium costs for marketplace plans. It also would take away the additional federal incentives for the first two years of Medicaid expansion that Alabama left on the table, increasing the chances that hundreds of thousands of our neighbors will remain stuck in the health coverage gap with no options to afford life-saving care.

“The Senate should put the future and well-being of all of us ahead of tax cuts for the wealthy and well-connected. That means rejecting the House bill’s harmful service cuts for working people and tax giveaways to wealthy households. Our senators should focus instead on building an economy that works for everyone in Alabama and across our country.”

More resources

Read the February letter from Alabama Arise and 111 partner organizations urging Alabama’s congressional delegation to oppose harmful cuts to Medicaid and SNAP.

Read the January letter from Alabama Arise and 55 partner organizations urging Alabama’s congressional delegation to oppose further tax cuts for wealthy people.

Arise legislative update: Week of April 21, 2025

By Alabama Arise

Arise’s Whitney Washington breaks down why HB 477, a bill to allow junk health plans, is not a solution for Alabama’s health coverage gap. HB 477 would authorize non-insurance health plans that aren’t regulated by the Alabama Department of Insurance and that could cap benefits and discriminate against people with preexisting conditions.

This bill is unfortunately gaining traction in the Legislature, and time is running short to stop it. Please contact your legislator today and tell them to vote against this harmful legislation: https://votervoice.net/CoverAlabama/Campaigns/124108/Respond

Full transcript below:

Hi, I’m Whitney Washington, communications associate with Alabama Arise. You’ve probably heard a lot from us about HB 477, the junk health plan bill. If enacted, this bill would allow farm bureaus to sell health plans to their members. While this might sound like a good thing, we disagree.

These plans are not insurance. They are not regulated by the Alabama Department of Insurance.

They can discriminate based on preexisting additions, and there is no limit on out-of-pocket costs. These plans can end up hurting the people that need them the most. HB 477, unfortunately, already passed out of the House with a disappointing 98-1 vote.

This week, it’s up in the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee. If it passes out there, it goes to the full Senate, so this is one of the last opportunities we have to stop this devastating bill. Please show your support and, tell your senator to vote no on HB 477.

Please consider joining Arise. If you’re already a member, tell your friends, and be sure to follow us on YouTube, X, Facebook, Instagram and BlueSky.

Arise legislative update: Week of March 31, 2025

By Alabama Arise

With a little less than half of the Alabama Legislature’s 2025 regular session remaining, Arise’s David Stout breaks down what to expect in the weeks ahead. The General Fund and Education Trust Fund budgets both will begin moving soon. Arise is working to ensure the education budget includes funding to allow every public school to choose to provide no-cost school breakfast for every student.

Arise will keep advocating to reduce the state sales tax on groceries again this year. We’re also hopeful for continued progress on bills to improve maternal health and reform Alabama’s criminal justice system. And we are opposing bills that would authorize junk health plans and harm immigrant communities and their families.

Follow our updates by signing up for our email list at alarise.org and following us on all of our social media platforms!

Full transcript:

Hello, I’m David Stout, legislative director for Alabama Arise, with a look forward to the last 14 days of this legislative session.

Most importantly are the two budgets. The General Fund budget, which will allocate over $3 billion, and the Education Trust Fund budget, which will allocate over $9 billion, will be moving in the last days of the session. Arise has been working hard to include in the Education Trust Fund budget monies to incentivize all schools to provide breakfast for every student.

Very important in the Education Trust Fund budget is a bill that reduces the grocery tax by another cent. This has been a longtime objective of Arise. It is now in the Senate awaiting action.

There are several criminal justice and parole bills that have a chance of passing. A couple of the criminal justice bills deal with resentencing, which is progressive and will allow some inmates to be paroled early. Secondly, there are bills to provide oversight to the parole board, which is much needed. Also, for the first time, there is a bill moving that allows virtual hearings, meaning that a person or an inmate who is eligible for parole will be able to present directly, virtually, to the parole board.

There are a couple of Medicaid bills moving forward that are very important for maternal health. One will provide care early in pregnancy for a Medicaid-eligible mother, and another will provide drugs and care for mothers who suffer from postpartum depression.

And of course, there are always controversial bills that we will be monitoring and perhaps working against. One is the so-called Alfa insurance plan, which is not insurance at all. It does not provide oversight for the programs, nor does it cover preexisting conditions. Secondly, immigration bills continue to hang around, which can be punitive and certainly disruptive in Alabama.

Lastly, there are two Medicaid- and SNAP-related bills under consideration that would severely restrict the allocation of those benefits to the elderly, children, and those with disabilities.

It’s important to stay informed in the last 14 days of the session. It’s also important that you continue your membership or join. It is through contributions and membership that Arise is able to continue working on bills that will benefit all Alabamians.

Thank you.

Arise legislative update: Week of March 24, 2025

By Alabama Arise

Arise’s Dev Wakeley provides updates from the first half of the Alabama Legislature’s 2025 regular session as lawmakers are on spring break this week.

In good news, lawmakers passed a paid parental leave bill on Thursday! SB 199 will introduce paid leave for new parents who work as teachers or state employees. The bill now goes to the governor for her signature. We also saw important progress on untaxing groceries last week as the House voted 103-0 for HB 386. This bill would reduce the state sales tax on groceries from 3% to 2%, building on the momentum of the 1-cent reduction that Arise members’ advocacy helped secure in 2023.

Dev also warns that SB 84, which would authorize junk health plans, remains alive at the State House. We need to continue to oppose this bill and advocate instead for Medicaid expansion as a real solution to close Alabama’s coverage gap.

Full transcript:

Hi, I’m Dev Wakeley, Alabama Arise’s worker policy advocate, here with this week’s legislative update.

We got big news this week as more than 200 Arise members got together at the State House to advocate for positive policy change that benefits people who have the least resources in the state. We spoke with legislators all across the state about good bills that we want to see pass and bad bills that we want to stop. And we made some significant progress.

The biggest news from the past week was the passage of HB 327 and SB 199, which are the companion bills that will provide paid parental leave for state employees, for teachers in Alabama’s high schools, and for two-year college employees. These bills are sponsored by Rep. Ginny Shaver in the House and by Sen. Vivian Figures in the Senate, respectively.

This is a first-in-class bill throughout the South. It provides eight weeks of paid leave for mothers and two weeks of paid leave for fathers. It’s available for childbirth, for adoption of a child under the age of 3, and, unfortunately, in cases of miscarriage or stillbirth as well. This is the best in the South by far. It’s a great bill, and we’re really excited to see this pass.

We are going to see it signed by Gov. Kay Ivey. This is one of her legislative priorities, and this is a bill that Arise has been advocating for over a year now. Great to see that pass.

In other developments, we also saw a bill to knock another cent off the state portion of the grocery tax pass out of the House entirely. This bill is sponsored by Rep. Danny Garrett. It’s a great bill. Groceries shouldn’t be taxed, and we love to see this bill moving forward. We hope to see full passage of it.

In unfortunate developments, we’re seeing some movement by a junk health plan that will do nothing to benefit Alabamians and, in fact, will make real change via full comprehensive Medicaid expansion more difficult. That bill, SB 84, is something we’re hoping to stop. We had hundreds of our members speak with their legislators about the need to engage in real change and not allow corporations to paper over the health care problems that Alabamians are facing.

To know a little more about what we’re doing on a regular basis, please follow us on social media. Visit our website, and you too can become an Arise member and advocate for positive change in Alabama.

We’re going to keep working, and we’re going to see more wins just like the ones we saw this past week.

Thanks. I appreciate your time. See you soon.

Arise legislative update: Week of March 10, 2025

By Alabama Arise

Arise’s Jennifer Harris provides an update on bills to expand access to maternal health care, postpartum care and paid parental leave in Alabama. She celebrates the progress on HB 89 and SB 102, which would remove barriers to Medicaid enrollment for expectant mothers, as well as SB 191 and HB 322, which would improve access to care for mothers facing postpartum depression. Lawmakers also are advancing HB 327 and SB 199 to ensure paid parental leave for teachers and state employees.

Jennifer also shares the good news that both Republicans and Democrats are working to continue reducing Alabama’s state sales tax on groceries. HB 386, which would reduce the state grocery tax from 3% to 2%, could be up for a House vote when lawmakers return March 18.

Full transcript:

Hello. I am Jennifer Harris, senior health policy advocate at Alabama Arise, and I’m excited to share legislative updates from the State House this week on maternal health and family supports.

First up, HB 89 and companion bill SB 102, presumptive eligibility. Medicaid covers almost half of all births in Alabama, but unfortunately, for many of those moms, the paperwork process can take up to 60 days. This bill removes those barriers and allows moms to schedule their first prenatal appointments during the approval process. Prenatal health care for the entire pregnancy is a key factor in ensuring we have healthier moms and infants. These bills continue to move successfully through both chambers with bipartisan support.

Next up, SB 191 and HB 322. These bills seek to address postpartum depression in new mothers. They ask Medicaid to create a screening tool that helps physicians identify postpartum depression symptoms, provides for adequate treatment, and creates educational material to share with mothers, families, and providers.

In continued support for new and expanding families, SB 199 and HB 327 provide paid parental leave for new parents with eight weeks of paid leave. These bipartisan bills lead the Southeast in supporting working families.

And lastly, Alabama Arise worked to lift advocate voices and successfully champion a state grocery tax cut. This tax cut was implemented as a two-step process, with the first step beginning in 2023. HB 386 was introduced last week to continue our work to ease financial burdens for Alabama families. Look for updates to come on this exciting development.

The legislative session will be on break this week, but you can stay up to date by visiting our website, alarise.org, to sign up for our email list and action alerts. Be sure to follow us @AlabamaArise on all social media platforms and share with your friends and family.