by Adam Walker The New Haven independent
Around 187,000 Connecticut residents — or 1 in 20 people — could lose their healthcare coverage due to sweeping federal budget cuts passed under HR1, also known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill.”
That’s according to Rep. Rosa DeLauro, who spoke Monday at a press conference held at Grimes Center, a skilled nursing facility on Chapel Street.
The new law, signed by President Donald Trump, includes deep cuts to Medicaid and other safety-net programs, which DeLauro and state officials warned will trigger a healthcare and elder care crisis across Connecticut.
Monday’s event featured testimony from DeLauro; Andrea Barton Reeves, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Social Services (DSS); Dr. Beverly Kidder, vice president of Community Programs at the Agency on Aging of South Central Connecticut; and Dr. Gerard Kerins, a Yale New Haven Health geriatric specialist.
DeLauro, the ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, criticized the bill’s core priorities.
Around 1 million Connecticut residents are currently on Medicaid, known in Connecticut as HUSKY. According to DeLauro, 74 percent of nursing home residents in the state rely on Medicaid to afford care.
“People will die as a result of this legislation,” she said. “That is not hyperbole — it is an unavoidable fact.”
The law introduces several major changes to Medicaid.
Under the law, recipients must regularly submit documentation that they’re working, volunteering, or attending school at least 80 hours a month, or caring for young child (among other exemptions). The law reduces the retroactive coverage window from 90 to 60 days, meaning if someone’s application takes longer to process, they could be personally responsible for tens of thousands of dollars in uncovered costs. It requires recipients to re-qualify every six months, a burden DeLauro said will fall hardest on seniors, people with disabilities, and other low-income residents who may lack the time, access, or capacity to complete paperwork on tight deadlines.
“These aren’t people who are ineligible,” DeLauro said. “They’re people who won’t be able to keep up with the system’s new demands.”
Barton Reeves warned that the law also imposes severe financial and administrative burdens on the state’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
Previously fully funded by the federal government, SNAP will now require state cost-sharing — with Connecticut facing $33 million in direct benefit costs and $40 million in administrative expenses. That totals to $77 million in new obligations.
She added that some older residents already receive as little as $65 per month in food assistance.
“This is not what humanity in the United States looks like,” Barton Reeves said. “It is not who we are as a people.”
She noted that DSS is already receiving about 4,000 calls per day from residents seeking help with Medicaid, SNAP, and other supports — a number that’s expected to rise sharply as the law takes effect on January 2027.
According to a statement on the White House website, President Trump argues the legislation does not cut Medicaid, but instead “protects and strengthens” the program for those who “truly need it.” The statement says the law targets “waste, fraud, and abuse,” enforces work requirements, and restricts coverage for undocumented immigrants.
But the Congressional Budget Office estimates the law will result in 11.8 million people across the country losing Medicaid coverage over the next decade — while adding $3.4 trillion to the federal deficit.
DeLauro argued the cuts are being made solely to fund massive tax breaks for top earners.
“The only reason all of this is being done is because there are tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans and the biggest corporations,” she said.
One of the most immediate threats, according to healthcare officials, is to Medicaid waiver programs — which allow seniors and people with disabilities to receive care at home, instead of being forced into nursing homes.
Kidder said these programs provide cost-effective care in preferred environments — but are likely to face cutbacks or more paperwork hurdles under the new law.
“This is very important for the dignity of people for as long as they possibly can to get care in the least restricted environments,” Kidder said.
She warned that if seniors can no longer access home-based care, they will be pushed prematurely into institutional care — a more expensive alternative for both families and taxpayers.
Lina Perrotti, daughter of 97-year-old Gene Puslys of Milford, shared how Medicaid made it possible for her mother to receive the care she needs — and for Perrotti to keep working.
Her mother, who has advanced dementia, now lives in Grimes Center. To qualify for Medicaid, she said the family had to spend down her mother’s savings and home. Perrotti said home care was initially manageable, but her mother’s needs soon outpaced what the family could safely provide.
“Without Medicaid, I would have had to stop working to be her full-time caregiver,” she said. “And now, even with her in skilled nursing, I worry what happens if benefits get cut.”
She described one night when her mother was agitated, and a nurse aide calmed her by holding her hand and singing to her until she fell asleep, the kind of compassion she fears may be lost as budgets tighten.
Speakers emphasized that the legislation’s effects extend far beyond low-income residents. They explained that as uncompensated care rises, insurance premiums will increase for those with private coverage. Hospitals and nursing homes will face staffing shortages, potential closures, and delayed treatment — putting even insured patients at risk.
“This is not in isolation,” DeLauro said. “It affects the entire healthcare system.”
DeLauro: This is all to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy.
Andrea Barton Reeves