WNC Health Advocates sponsor rally to expand Medicaid and film screening

Press release from WNCHA:

WNCHA TO HOLD EXPAND MEDICAID RALLY AND FILM SCREENING

ASHEVILLE – WNC Health Advocates sponsors a rally to expand Medicaid at 2
p.m. Sunday, June 22, at the Vance Monument, downtown. The rally will be
followed by a screening of the short documentary, “Meet the People,” by
North Carolina filmmaker Carol Edmonds.

The issue of Medicaid expansion should be a simple one, especially since it
would be fully funded by the federal government for the first three years,
then gradually diminish to 90 percent by 2022. North Carolinians already are
paying into the pot from which the expansion is being funded, but our tax
dollars are going to states that have chosen to expand Medicaid, and not
coming back to us.

Not expanding Medicaid also means up to a half million low-income people in
North Carolina are without health insurance and the access to care that
comes with it. Between 1,500 and 2,800 people are expected to die this year
alone in our state because of this lack of access to care. That translates
to five to eight people dying each day from lack of access to care.

The documentary, “Meet the People,” which will be shown at 4 p.m. at First
Congregational Church on Oak Street, tells the stories of people who are or
have been affected by this lack of access to care. Carol Edmonds will be at
the presentation to answer questions about the film.

For more information, call Leslie Boyd at 828-243-6712 or e-mail
leslie@wnchealthadvocate.org.