More than 90% of Black respondents say Medicaid is critical amid looming cuts

Advocates are gathering outside the Hippodrome Theater in Richmond, Virginia, this summer to protest Medicaid cuts. Federal data shows that Medicaid covers nearly two-thirds of black baby births in the U.S., and congressional cuts to the program are already limiting reproductive health care in black and low-income communities. (Photo by Bert Shepherd/Courtesy of Protect Our Care PAC)

At least 90% of Black people surveyed in a up-to-date survey said Medicaid is essential to them or their families, and more than half either have public insurance or have a family member who relies on the program.

“Medicaid is critical to so many things when it comes to ensuring we are healthy and addressing health disparities. Losing it or weakening it will only disproportionately harm our communities,” said Regina Davis Moss, president and CEO of In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda.

Davis Moss’ organization commissioned the 10 states Opinion pollwhich includes views from California, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, New Jersey, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Nonpartisan research firm PerryUndem conducted the survey between May and June, surveying 500 Black adults in each state.

The findings, shared exclusively with States Newsroom, show that a significant number of Black people who want children are not yet planning to have them because of cost and health concerns.

The results were also published several Planned Parenthood clinics The company, which served low-income Black patients, closed after a law went into effect that prevented certain reproductive health clinics affiliated with abortion providers from receiving Medicaid reimbursements until July 2026.

Planned Parenthood clinics in Louisiana, which never offered abortions during their decades of operation, closed on September 30. Sixty percent of patients in Baton Rouge and New Orleans were black and most had Medicaid insurance. States Newsroom reported. One of two Planned Parenthood locations in Memphis, where More than 60% of the population is blacktemporarily closed its doors the first week of October due to Medicaid cuts, Tennessee Lookout reported.

“Proximity is important, and the fact that these clinics are having to close means that individuals who need their services will have to go without,” said Danielle Atkinson, executive director of Mothering Justice, a national advocacy group based in Michigan.

Four Planned Parenthood clinics closed in their state this spring after the Trump administration cut millions in Title X family planning funding. Michigan push reported.

“They’re going to go without STI testing. They’re going to go without cancer screenings. They’re going to go without counseling,” Atkinson said.

The Medicaid ban on some reproductive health providers was part of a larger problem Reconciliation package This is almost supposed to be a breakthrough 1 trillion dollars of Medicaid more broadly over the next decade.

“Medicaid is a lifeline for Black women, girls and gender-expansive people,” said Davis Moss. The state and federal program covers nearly two-thirds of black birthsaccording to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and nearly half of all births nationwide.

Maternal health advocates are bracing for it Impact of Medicaid Cuts on Workforce and Delivery Unitswhich have already been closed rapidly in the last 10 years, especially in rural communities. A maternity ward in northeast Georgia, one of the states included in the survey, will close at the end of the month in part because of Medicaid cuts. Georgia recorder reported in September.

The In Our Own Voice survey results also show that Black people of childbearing age — in this case, 18 to 44 — want children but don’t plan to have them, due to the high cost of living.

California had the largest gap at 28 percentage points: 56% want children, but only 28% plan to have them.

“I think some of the reasons you’ve cited are not new issues that we’re dealing with, but it’s deeply concerning because they’re being exacerbated in this current administration,” Davis Moss said.

At least 69% of Black respondents in each of the 10 states said they were worried about caring for children or more children than they already have, while at least 67% cited housing costs and 57% cited child care costs.

“In many of these states, the cost of child care is higher than a year of tuition, which is a major barrier to people, first, entering the workforce, second, receiving the early intervention and early education that truly prepares their children for success, and third, giving individuals and families the opportunity to explore careers and learning opportunities,” Atkinson said.

Abortion restrictions also played a role in family planning, although in smaller numbers. At least 45% said they don’t want children because they or their loved ones could die from pregnancy, while 43% are worried about miscarriage care and 30% say abortion bans will prevent them from starting their families.

Three of the states included in the survey – Florida, Georgia and North Carolina – have bans on abortions longer than 20 weeks. Voters in California, Michigan and Ohio agreed Reproductive Rights Changes In recent years, the right to terminate a pregnancy until the fetus is viable has been secured Nevada And Virginia Similar security measures may be in place after the midterm elections.

A majority of voters in each of the 10 states believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases, and at least 78% believe black women should make the pregnancy decisions that are best for them.

Overall, at least half of Black adults surveyed are struggling with economic security. Black women of childbearing age were more likely than black men to expect less security for the remainder of Republican President Donald Trump’s second term.

“As we prepare to celebrate our 250th anniversary, all of the things we have fought for and achieved in terms of civil and human rights are under threat like never before,” said Davis Moss.