In rural Louisiana, Speaker Mike Johnson's constituents fear potential Medicaid cuts
In House Speaker Mike Johnson’s backyard, many residents rely on anti-poverty programs to help make ends meet — and are pleading with the Louisiana Republican to protect those benefits as Congress weighs steep federal spending cuts.
VINTON, La. — In House Speaker Mike Johnson’s backyard, many residents rely on anti-poverty programs to help make ends meet — and are pleading with Johnson, R-La., to protect those benefits as Congress weighs steep federal spending cuts.
Pastor Leroy McClelland, who lives in Johnson’s southwestern Louisiana district and volunteers at a local food bank, said he is dependent on Medicaid and food stamps after having suffered several medical issues and would be in a serious “bind” without government assistance. He added that he’s far from alone in those struggles.
“People can’t do without it,” McClelland told NBC News outside the food bank. “So I would tell them [Congress] to help us out. Help us. People are hurting out here. And you may be from Louisiana, but you’re the House speaker. Cross the aisle. Work together to do whatever you got to do. That’s my message.”
Summer Stinson, a mother of four who was picking up food for her family as well as an elderly woman who can’t drive, said the prospect of cuts to social safety net programs has been weighing heavily on her mind.
“My children are on Medicaid. So yes, I do. I do fear that very much, and they make it to where insurance isn’t really affordable with our companies,” said Stinson, a native of Vinton. “I don’t know what we would do without it.”
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