More than 60 people gathered for a funeral march through downtown Winston-Salem on Saturday to rally against federal cuts to health spending.
People carried signs, tombstones and a colorful assortment of umbrellas that emulated the style of New Orleans. Attendees denounced President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” that passed in July.
Participants carried a funeral casket through the streets to symbolize the death it could bring. According to the nonpartisan health policy research group KFF, the legislation is estimated to increase the number of uninsured people in North Carolina by around 320,000. This is in part due to new Medicaid work requirements.
Resident Jim Weiss said he’s experienced firsthand just how burdensome filling out forms can be through helping his disabled son, who’s employed.
“They always have to keep sending it back to me over and over again, and we go back and forth, back and forth, trying to actually get the forms correct so that he can continue to receive Medicaid," Weiss said. "I can't imagine how many people are going to lose their Medicaid because they can't fill out the forms correctly.”
Attorney Fred Lewis, who was dressed as the Grim Reaper, said people should demand Congress extend the premium tax credits for the Affordable Care Act set to expire at the end of the year.
“If they could extend the tax cut for corporations and the affluent for $4 trillion, they can extend the subsidies for average and working class Americans,” Lewis said.
The expiring credits limit the amount paid by an individual or household for a specific plan.
Lewis says the rally aims to draw more attention to these issues, as the impact could be devastating.