Statement re the budget statement by Sen. Berger and Speaker Moore from the Care4Carolina coalition of 100+ organizations around the state working to close NC’s health care coverage gap:
As we emerge from a pandemic and an economic disaster, making sure that hard working North Carolinians have access to safe and affordable health care so they can stay on the job and support their families is more important than ever.
Closing our state’s health care coverage gap is a priority for hundreds of thousands of parents, veterans, voters. And so, the Care4Carolina coalition of 100+ organizations around the state will continue working with policy makers to provide the support that is now — thanks to robust federal incentives — more achievable than ever. Thirty eight other states have chosen to close the gap by expanding Medicaid, and the available federal-state deal to do so is highly favorable to North Carolina.
We applaud Sen. Berger and Speaker Moore’s express commitment to keeping in mind our state’s “future needs,” and note that there is no greater need — now or in the future — than remaining healthy enough to work, provide and thrive. While much of North Carolina may be “booming,” as noted in the legislative leaders’ statement, hundreds of thousands of hard working people are struggling.
-Erica Palmer Smith, Executive Director, Care4Carolina