By Demitria Davis
The Republican-controlled House of Representatives on May 22, 2025, passed a proposed budget that would slash funding for programs millions of Americans rely on: Medicaid, Medicare, the Affordable Care Act, and SNAP benefits.
For some, these programs are just part of abstract policy debates or political bargaining chips. But for me, these programs are the reason I survived and ultimately thrived.
I grew up in the foster care system. For much of my life, Medicaid was my only health coverage.
As a child, I didn’t understand the mechanics of insurance. I just knew that when I got sick, my foster mom handed a small, credit card-like piece of plastic to a receptionist, they made a copy, and I saw the doctor.
Whether it was a pediatrician, or orthodontist, or urgent care visit, the routine was the same. In my young mind, I called it “free insurance.” Only as I got older, I realized just how vital that little card was.
As I approached 18, my foster mother began preparing my twin sister and me to navigate the healthcare system. She taught us how to fill out medical forms, how to find our policy and group numbers. These were small things but also empowering acts of independence.
When I aged out of foster care, I entered an Illinois state-funded program called Holyeton, which helps young adults transition from foster care to independent living.
Holyeton taught us essential life skills: how to budget, balance a checkbook, pay rent, grocery shop, and manage life’s basic responsibilities.
While many of our classmates were prepping for dorm life, my sister and I were apartment hunting. Holyeton connected us with housing and provided caseworkers who checked in weekly until we turned 21.
It wasn’t just a program; it was a lifeline. Just like Medicaid.
As a young adult, I kept using that same Medicaid card to schedule doctor visits and receive the healthcare I needed. I never hesitated before calling a doctor and never worried about whether I could afford antibiotics when I was sick.
To me, that seemed normal. It wasn’t.
Once I was living on my own, I began to understand how rare that access is. Friends and partners around me often lacked insurance, and I saw firsthand the painful consequences: people staying sick because they couldn’t afford urgent care or hospital visits or skipping medications because they were too expensive.
That’s why the current budget proposals to slash Medicaid and other safety net programs are more than just frustrating to me, they are heartbreaking.
Cutting Medicaid doesn’t just balance a budget; it cuts opportunities for young people, especially young adults aging out of foster care. It punishes children who have no say in their circumstances.
It turns basic health needs into unaffordable luxuries for low-income families.
Let’s be clear: eliminating or restricting Medicaid will leave hardworking families, single parents, disabled adults, and foster youth without access to routine healthcare.
While adults with employer-provided insurance often have an easier time accessing care because they pay premiums and employers negotiate with providers, those reliant on Medicaid face a system where providers are already more hesitant to accept state-funded patients.
Cutting Medicaid only deepens that inequality.
I am not a statistic. I am a living example of what can happen when social programs work. If we want to build a stronger, healthier, more self-sufficient society, slashing Medicaid and related services is exactly the wrong direction.
Behind every budget line item are real lives people like me, who only had a chance because the safety net held.
Demitria Davis is a birth and postpartum doula in Missouri and a volunteer with Abortion Action Missouri.