The LuLac Edition #5, 380, JuLy 8th, 2025

 

ALL ABOUT

MEDICAID

•        Income: Having an annual household income below a certain level.

•        Family size: Eligibility is determined by household size.

•        Disability: Some states consider disability status.

•        Age: Certain age groups, such as elderly individuals or children, may be eligible.

•        Health conditions: Having specific health conditions may also impact eligibility.

Medicaid is a government program in the United States that provides health insurance for adults and children with limited income and resources. The program is partially funded and primarily managed by state governments, which also have wide latitude in determining eligibility and benefits, but the federal government sets baseline standards for state Medicaid programs and provides a significant portion of their funding. States are not required to participate in the program, although all have since 1982.

Medicaid was established in 1965, part of the Great Society set of programs during President Lyndon B. Johnson’s Administration, and was significantly expanded by the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which was passed in 2010. In most states, any member of a household with income up to 138% of the federal poverty line qualifies for Medicaid coverage under the provisions of the ACA.

Medicaid is the largest source of funding for medical and health-related services for people with low income in the United States, providing taxpayer-funded health insurance to 85 million low-income and disabled people as of 2022-in 2019, the program paid for half of all U.S. births.

In 2023, the total (federal and state) annual cost of Medicaid was $870 billion, with an average cost per enrollee of $7,600 for 2021.

37% of enrollees were children, but they only accounted for 15% of the spending, ($3,000 per person) while seniors and disabled persons accounted for 21% of enrollees and 52% of spending (more than $18,000 per person).

Those numbers per person represent the money spent on various individual situations. MEDICAID recipients don't get checks!  You'd think the way all GOP defenders of these cuts, especially Bresnahan and Meuser are carrying on, everyone on Medicaid gets checks.

Plus these two and every GOP member is talking about work requirements. NEWSFLASH....THEY EXIST NOW. 20 hours a week. But those 20 hours are dependent on companies that hire them.  The companies in most cases are TOO CHEAP to spend money on employee health care and there are times when that 20-hour week isn't met. Which brings us to enforcement. No one in this GOP Congress has laid out a plan on how to administer this coherently.  Like the ICE deportation program, mistakes are made, huge ones and there are no consequences.

The Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) is a joint federal and state program that provides health coverage to uninsured children in families with incomes too high to qualify for Medicaid, but too low to afford private or group health plan coverage.

In general, Medicaid recipients must be U.S. citizens or qualified non-citizens, and may include low-income adults, their children, and people with certain disabilities. Medicaid also covers long-term services and supports, including both nursing home care and home- and community-based services, for those with low incomes and minimal assets.

Of the 7.7 million Americans who used long-term services and supports in 2020, about 5.6 million were covered by Medicaid.

It is no exaggeration that children will starve, crime will increase, the poor will become less healthy and people will die. But Bresnehan, Meuser and the Insurrectionist Perry will smile and tell you this will be great for America.

THEIR AMERICA! (LuLac, AP, wikipedia)

 

THE TARIFF’S CONFUSION

There is a real issue with the Trump tariff’s. To quote the President here, “they don’t know what the **ck they’re doing!” While the stock market has moderated and not reacted, being content to go on despite the uncertainty, other nations as well as the American people have no clue as to where this ius headed. The administration tries to keep moving the goalposts. And not listening to anyone.

He also has proposed enacting legislation requiring commensurate retaliatory tariffs if any nation puts a tariff on U.S. exports that is higher than the tariff imposed by the U.S. on the same products.

Multiple analyses do show that increasing tariffs, or applying new ones, would produce more federal revenue. However, economic experts have predicted that Trump’s proposals also would raise costs for Americans and reduce the country’s economic growth.

Now he has extended the deadline and is sending letters to nations in order to invigorate talk. In the meantime, more uncertainty reigns which is emblematic of this administration.(LuLac, CNN) 

 

 

STIFLING THE PRESS 

TEXAS STYLE

 

The state of Texas had a great natural disaster tragedy on the 249th birthday of America. Heavy rains caused unexpected terror, disruption and disaster as Texas officials failed to sound the alarm bell until the rain was falling. What is it with Texas? In 2022 a police force in Texas turned cowards as school children were gunned down. Now after more than 80 deaths that could have been prevented with better planning, Texas officials are getting their itty bitty feelings hurt when the media asks pertinent questions regarding emergency preparedness. And information.

The Governor who spent most of his time renting busses to send immigrants to major cities took his eye off the ball. Sure it was mother nature but four facts remain.

1.      The firing of petrologists by the Trump administration's lackey Musk is coming home to roost. Nature doesn't care  who it hurts, not even big loud mouthed puff chested Texans. 

2.      The lack of information in a timely manner cost lives. But hey the dead will join the victims of the mass shooting in '22 and be relegated to the next news cycle in a few days.Furthermore there were 5 prior incidents but the state DIDN'T HAVE RAIN GAUGES BECAUSE THEY WERE TOO EXPENSIVE. 

3.      Texas officials won't answer questions from the from people who will find them accountable.

4.      The dumb ass voters of Texas will continue to re-elect the incompetent and insensitive morons they call public officials.

 

MUSK PARTY NO PANACEA

If Elon Musk thinks his American Party idea is going to get rid of Trump Republicans and Trump, he's dead wrong. Money can't buy love can't they buy elections as witnessed in Musk's defeat in Wisconsin. Picture this, Take Susan Collins who is up for re-election in Maine. She runs as a Republican, a Democrat runs and an American party member run. You need a party infrastructure to win. If you don't, it's a vanity vote. But enough low information voters will vote for the American party and split the vote 3 ways. Collins wins. 

Third parties never work. Only one in the last 90 years won electoral votes and that was George Wallace's American Independent Party. He won 45 votes from 6 states in 1968. 

John Anderson who ran a third-party effort in 1980 won none.

Ross Perot who ran in 1992 got 19% of the vote but won nothing.

Ralph Nader tried a third party  effort and sunk Al Gore.

History, which apparently Musk never studied, does repeat itself. Musk will unwittingly embolden Trump.

 

 

 

FRANCES CABRINI FIRST UNITED STATES SAINT

Frances Xavier Cabrini MSC (Italian: Francesca Saverio Cabrini; born Maria Francesca Cabrini; 15 July 1850 – 22 December 1917), also known as Mother Cabrini, was a prominent Italian-American religious sister in the Roman Catholic Church. She was the first American to be recognized by the Vatican as a saint on July 7th, 1946. 

Cabrini founded the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (MSC), a religious institute that today provides education, health care, and other services to the poor in 15 nations. During her lifetime, Cabrini established 67 schools, orphanages and other social service institutions in Italy, the United States and other nations. She became a revered and influential figure in the Catholic hierarchy in the United States and Rome.

Born in Italy, Cabrini migrated to the United States in 1887. Despite anti-Italian prejudice and opposition within the Catholic Church, she successfully established charitable institutions in New York City for poor Italian immigrants. She later extended these efforts to Italian immigrant populations across the United States. Catholic leaders were soon calling on her to create missions in Latin America and Europe.

In September 1887, Cabrini went to Rome to meet Leo XIII. She asked him for permission to set up a convent in Rome, which he readily gave. She also asked for permission to send missions to Asia. However, Leo XIII was thinking of a different destination.

During the 1880s, the pope and the rest of the Roman Curia were worried about the large numbers of impoverished Italian immigrants emigrating to New York. Leo was concerned that these Catholics would leave the Church unless they received material assistance and spiritual guidance. Instead of allowing Cabrini to go to China, Leo XIII told her, go "...not to the East, but to the West..." to New York City.

In December 1888, Cabrini committed to going to New York City. The pope also recognized the MSC as a missionary institute, the first group of Italian religious sisters to receive that approval. Scalabrini promised Cabrini that his religious order, Scalabrinians would greet the MSC sisters in New York City, take care of their needs, and work closely with them

Cabrini became a naturalized American citizen in 1909.[2] After her death in 1917, her order started a campaign for her sainthood. The Vatican beatified Cabrini in 1938 and canonized her a saint in 1946. The Vatican in 1950 named her as the patron saint of immigrants. How ironic that in today’s attack on immigrants, undocumented and otherwise this anniversary is celebrated.

Pope Pius XI beatified Cabrini on 13 November 1938. Smith, now a priest, attended the ceremony. Pope Pius XII canonized Cabrini on 7 July 1946. After Cabrini was canonised, an estimated 120,000 people attended a mass of thanksgiving at Soldier Field in Chicago.

In 1950, Pius XII named Cabrini as the patron saint of immigrants, recognizing her efforts worldwide to build schools, orphanages and hospitals.Pope Francis has stated that Cabrini's charitable works in Argentina inspired him to become a priest.  (Wikipedia, LuLac)