Gov. Josh Stein visited Charlotte to tour the Smith Family Foundation’s Behavioral Health Urgent Care, emphasizing the importance of mental health treatment and crisis services. The facility focuses on individuals with mental illness or substance use disorders. During a walkthrough, Stein said lawmakers in Raleigh need to fund Medicaid.
"Both sides agree, the House and the Senate, that the state does not have enough money to operate Medicaid, but they refuse to come together," Stein said. "They're allowing unrelated political disputes between the two chambers to get in their way of funding Medicaid to ensure that providers like this all across North Carolina get fairly compensated for the critical work that they provide to the 3 million North Carolinians who are on Medicaid."
Stein also emphasized that the General Assembly needs to set aside their political differences
Since Saturday, Charlotte has seen Border Patrol agents arrest people accused of being in the country illegally, and agents are also operating in Raleigh today. There’s no timetable for when the operations could end. In a statement, Stein said the focus should be on arresting violent criminals and drug traffickers. He also said people shouldn’t have to live in fear.
"We deserve to deport anyone who hurts North Carolinians or Americans," Stein said.
"But we also deserve to have a pathway to legal status for people who've been here a really long time, who've invested in their community, who are law-abiding, they pay taxes. They do not need to live in fear of this government coming up and sweeping them off the streets."
So far in Charlotte, Border Patrol agents have arrested more than 200 people, most of whom they have not identified.
