NEW YORK, NY – On July 30, 2026 New York patients, union members, and health workers gathered across from Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan, to celebrate the 61st anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid, to share personal stories about our broken healthcare system, and to demand bold action by Congress and state lawmakers to protect and restore Medicare and Medicaid and to pass Medicare for All and the New York Health Act to provide comprehensive healthcare for all, without exception.
Speakers included people with lived experience sharing personal stories about Medicare and Medicaid and barriers to care in the current system, representatives from cosponsors, and political and community leaders. Last year’s huge tax cut bill (HR1) decimated funding for existing public healthcare programs and is now causing tens of millions of people to lose their health insurance and care, and is putting hospitals and clinics under severe financial strain – all exactly as planned. Our next Congress must reverse all this damage, and fight for major reforms like Medicare-for-All that will ensure that all people in the U.S. have affordable healthcare.
“The devastating budget cuts from Washington have already left 450,000 New Yorkers without adequate or affordable healthcare coverage, threatening our entire healthcare ecosystem,” said State Senator Gustavo Rivera. “To celebrate the 61st anniversary of the law that created the Medicaid and Medicare program, we acknowledge that healthcare is a human right and recommit ourselves to providing affordable healthcare to all New Yorkers. When we return to Albany, we must restore basic coverage for these populations and ultimately pass the New York Health Act, to guarantee healthcare for every New Yorker no matter what happens in Washington DC.” – New York State Senator Gustavo Rivera.
“Today we celebrate Medicare and Medicaid, two tremendously successful programs that have provided affordable health care for hundreds of millions of people for over six decades, and given peace of mind to our families. Both programs are tremendously popular and beloved across the political spectrum, and woe to the politician who attacks them” said Mark Hannay, Director of Metro New York Health Care for All. “The Trump regime’s #OneBigUglyBill decimated funding for Medicaid, Medicare, and the Affordable Care Act, so we are also committed to fight back to reverse all these cuts in the next Congress. In addition, those lawmakers will have a new opportunity to fight for major health care reform that provides affordable health care to everyone, something the public strongly wants across the political spectrum..”
Participating organizations: Metro New York Health Care for All and Physicians for a National Health Program – New York Metro(Hosts). 504 Democratic Club, ACT UP NY, Ancient Song Doula Services, Bronx United Progressives, Campaign for New York Health, Center for Independence of the Disabled, New York, Coalition for Asian American Children and Families, Cross-Union Retirees Organizing Committee, Green Party of New York, Health Justice for New York, Housing Works, Make the Road NY, National Association of Social Workers-New York, New York City Against Segregated Healthcare, New York Progressive Action Network, New York State Nurses Association, New Yorkers for Culture & Arts, Northwest Bronx Indivisible, NY StateWide Senior Action Council, NYC DSA Healthcare Working Group, Our Bronx, Queens Says No Kings, Radical Elders, Rank+File4NYHealth, Rise and Resist Health Care Action Group, Strong Economy For All Coalition, Students for a National Health Program, Urban Justice Center – Safety Net Project and Activists
© Erik McGregor – erikrivas@hotmail.com – 917-225-8963