50+ SOUTH CAROLINA ORGANIZATIONS RESPOND TO CONGRESS PROPOSALS AIMING TO DRASTICALLY CUT FUNDING TO MEDICAID AND SNAP

February 20, 2025 / [email protected]

Posted in

Latest House budget proposal cuts a third of all Medicaid funding over 10 years, greatly reducing healthcare children, seniors, people with disabilities

COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA – Over 50+ South Carolina organizations united to call on South Carolina’s Congressional leaders to protect Medicaid and SNAP from harmful cuts. The list of organizations supporting the letter to South Carolina’s Congressional leaders includes nonprofits, faith organizations, food banks, and small businesses from around South Carolina.

“These proposed cuts are rushed and do not weigh the immediate effects that they would have on our community,” says South Carolina Appleseed Legal Justice Center Executive Director Bridget Brown. “They would immediately impact access to healthcare to those who need it most – this includes seniors, children, low income families, and people with disabilities. And the impact would not be temporary, but rather long-lasting and devastating for South Carolinians all across the state.”

The letter states that “if South Carolina were to lose federal funding for Medicaid, more than 1.2 million people are at risk of losing their healthcare benefits.”

“Reducing Medicaid funding would not only hurt the individuals who rely on it, but it would also have widespread consequences for our entire state budget and economy,” says SC Appleseed’s Founder/Director of Policy, Sue Berkowitz.

In the letter, the organizations warn that cuts to Medicaid could  expedite and exacerbate the closure of hospitals in rural areas, worsening the healthcare crisis. They also indicate that cuts could strain the capacity of children’s hospitals in the state, potentially leading to closures there as well.

The letter also notes that cuts to SNAP would affect over 600,000 South Carolinians, not only increasing the risk of hunger in the state but further impacting the local economy. For every dollar spent, SNAP generates about one dollar and fifty cents of economic revenue, with locally purchased food at 5,200 authorized retail locations in South Carolina.

“Half of planned budget cuts are coming from healthcare programs – as much as a third of Medicaid funding over 10 years,” says Brenda Murphy, President of the South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP. “These cuts are sweeping and hurt everyone. Appropriate discussion should be made to ensure that those who need the program most do not lose healthcare.”

Read the full letter.

Join us in discussing the importance of these programs today by using our action tool to contact your SC Congressional Leaders. It only takes a moment to use and makes a tremendous difference!

Take Action: https://www.votervoice.net/SCJustice/Campaigns/121180/Respond

Full List of Organizations Signed On:

  • 1983 Evangelistic Ministries 
  • Able South Carolina
  • Alianza Latina of SC
  • American Lung Association, South Carolina
  • Arras Foundation
  • Black Voters Matter Fund
  • Brain Injury Association of South Carolina 
  • Charleston Legal Access
  • CMD’s Pantry and Resource Hub
  • Community Supported Grocery
  • Eastern Carolina Community Foundation
  • Family Connection of SC 
  • Feed & Seed Co.
  • Feeding the Carolinas
  • Food For All
  • FoodShare South Carolina 
  • GroceryRx
  • Habitat for Humanity
  • Healthcare For All – South Carolina
  • Huspah MBC Ministries
  • Institute for Child Success
  • JH Walker Legacy Foundation 
  • Latino Community Development
  • Lee County Foodshare 
  • LiveWell Greenville
  • Loaves & Fishes
  • Lowcountry Food Bank
  • Lowcountry Street Grocery
  • Mental Health America of South Carolina
  • Mental Illness Recovery Center, Inc. (MIRCI)
  • Mill Village Ministries
  • NAACP South Carolina State Conference
  • NAMI South Carolina
  • National Association of Social Workers, SC Chapter 
  • PASOs
  • Rainy Day Fund
  • RobinHood Group/Union County Farm & Craft Market/Farmers Market Fresh Pak
  • Sistercare 
  • Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina
  • SOS Health Care
  • South Carolina Association for Community Economic Development
  • South Carolina Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics
  • South Carolina Christian Action Council
  • South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce
  • South Carolina Unitarian Universalist Justice Alliance 
  • Sowing Seeds into the Midlands
  • TAG Consultants & Advisors 
  • The Baby Last
  • Time Served
  • Trident United Way
  • United Ministries 
  • Upstate Circle of Friends
  • Women’s Rights and Empowerment Network