The president of Catholic Charities U-S-A is outlining the cuts in social services Iowans would see under a proposed budget bill in Congress. Father Larry Snyder says the legislation could compromise the health and well-being of some of the poorest and most vulnerable people in Iowa and nationwide.
Snyder says “In Iowa alone, this bill would cut federal matching funds for nearly all of the state’s 186-thousand children enrolled in Medicaid. In addition, long-term care for nearly 42-thousand Iowa seniors would be effected and 78-million dollars in federal funding for Iowa’s child support enforcement efforts could be cut as well.”
He says the measure is certain to have long-term, harmful effects on countless families in Iowa and will only make the state’s budget crunch worse. Snyder says “There’s no question our government needs to spend tax dollars more responsibly, but ripping apart the social safety net is not the answer.” Catholic Charities U-S-A is one of the nation’s largest social service networks. Snyder calls the legislation “misguided” and says his group is making a last-minute plea to members of Congress to protect government programs for the poor from the budget knife.