HARRISBURG, Pa. — Glen Dunbar worries about what the future holds for his 44-year-old- son with Down syndrome now that the so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” has been signed into law.
The AFSCME Retiree Chapter 13 member expressed his fear at a press conference Tuesday in Harrisburg. Dozens of AFSCME members and members of other labor unions, along with a Pennsylvania state senator, were in attendance to call out Rep. Scott Perry for supporting the budget bill.
This devastating legislation will raise costs on Pennsylvania’s working families and retirees and threaten the public services we all depend on. It slashes vital programs like Medicaid and federal nutrition assistance and other public services to fund big tax breaks for billionaires and the ultra-rich.
The event was part of the AFL-CIO’s national “It’s Better in a Union” bus tour. This tour is bringing working people across the country together to defend their jobs, freedoms and local community services in the face of nonstop attacks from anti-worker politicians.
Referring to his son, Dunbar said, “I love him dearly, but without the non-medical residential and day services that he gets through a Medicaid waiver program, I don’t know what will become of him.”
Dunbar used to work for the Pennsylvania Department of Aging. So he understands how long-term care services work.
“Do you know that almost two-thirds of the elderly who receive long-term care depend on Medicaid to help pay their bills? What are they supposed to do? What are their families supposed to do?” he said. “Scott Perry must be held accountable for selling out middle-class people for the interests of billionaires.”
Some 310,000 Pennsylvanians could lose health care because of Perry’s vote to cut Medicaid. Hospitals, nursing homes and clinics are already moving to cut services and staff. Nearly 144,000 Pennsylvanians are at risk of losing food assistance. And all working families will face higher bills for health care, groceries and energy due to funding cuts in the Big Beautiful Bill.
AFSCME Council 13 member Perry Vanderglas works for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. He stands to lose under the new budget law.
“I am one of those people who will see their personal costs rise from the Big Beautiful Bill ... for what? To give billionaires another (tax cut) they don’t need? Absolutely not. That is just disgraceful,” Vanderglas said.
State Sen. Patty Kim joined AFSCME members to underscore that it’s everyday Americans who are penalized the most by this law so the very rich can benefit.
“This is about everyday people. People who work day in and day out to put food on the table, keep their kids healthy, and put a roof over their family’s head. They are your neighbors, your friends, your family. They are you, and me,” Kim said. “And they should be able to send their kids to the doctor when they’re sick and access food when they need it without worrying they’ll have it ripped away for some tech billionaire’s tax break.”
To join the fight, visit AFSCMEGO.org. To learn more about the “It’s Better in a Union” bus tour, visit BetterInAUnion.org.