Dear Editor:

As the death toll rises and searches continue in the aftermath of devastating and deadly flooding in Texas last week, the FEMA director and other budget hawks continue to diminish resources for infrastructure to combat growing climate instability and economic challenges across the country.

Instead, under the pretext of fiscal conservatism, the 2025 federal budget, enacted into law by the administration on July 4, ushers in the biggest heist and largest transfer of wealth in American history that will further destabilize an economy where millions of Americans are already struggling. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget projects that this new budget will add another $4 trillion to $5.5 trillion to the deficit over the next 10 years.

We are getting the best government for the affluent, billionaires, and aspiring trillionaires our tax dollars can buy. There are modest benefits for average-income earners, such as overtime pay, auto loan interest for American vehicles, and a temporary $6,000 Social Security deduction for seniors that will end in 2028.

The Guardian’s Steve Greenhouse writes, ”The House bill would hit the lowest earning 10% of Americans hardest: for them, it would mean a painful $1,600 cut in income on average (a 3.9% drop), according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). At the same time, the Trump-backed bill would be a boon to wealthy households – it would mean a $12,000 increase in net income, on average, for households in the top 10%, those earning above $692,000 a year. According to the Yale Budget Lab, the top 0.1% – those with income over $3.3m – would receive tax cuts of $103,500 on average.”

This budget falls heaviest on individuals who can least afford it. As consumer prices for basic goods and services spiral, many of the most draconian budget cuts will not go into effect until after the General Election in November 2026, in an effort to evade public scrutiny and potential loss of House and Senate seats.

Medicaid and Medicare provide lifelines of essential services to millions, including eligible low-income adults, children, pregnant women, elderly adults, people with disabilities, nursing home residents, and community-based care. The U.S. Office of Budget and Program Analysis estimates that 750,000 Georgians across households—children, and single parents could lose their coverage due to looming budget cuts to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act.

According to data from the Center for Health Care Quality and Payment Reform, nine Georgia hospitals are at imminent risk of closure. The State Health and Value Strategies program at Princeton University estimates that hospitals could lose 18% of their Medicaid funding over the next 10 years.

In addition, budget cuts will cause significant harm to struggling nursing homes and hospitals. According to CMS, HHS, and independent researchers, underlying reasons for closures include failure to expand Medicaid, reduced Medicare reimbursement, compliance issues, changing demographics, and staff shortages. The effect on Thomas County, like other rural Southwest Georgia communities, would be devastating and far-reaching, particularly among vulnerable populations where more people are uninsured, and there are higher rates of morbidity and mortality.

For states, however, there is an opportunity to apply for relief through the “Rural Health Transformation Plan,” intended to stabilize hospitals, health clinics, community mental health centers, and federally qualified health centers, also to improve health outcomes and access to care. The application deadline is December 31, 2025.

Medicaid is the primary payer for 73% of Georgia seniors in nursing homes. Thomas County GA │USA data reveals a daily average of 293 seniors in nursing facilities. How many families are prepared to care for Granny at home?

Also, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and Welfare data, between 25%–35% of Thomas County residents rely on some form of federal assistance (Medicaid, SNAP, SSI, SSDI, and other benefits), with Medicaid being the primary funding source. This translates to a disturbing impact on Thomas County, where 45% of mothers and newborns rely on Medicaid, and 50% of children are enrolled in medical assistance programs. This, as a $19.8 million Community Change Grant to Thomasville, awarded in February 2025, but withdrawn in May 2025, further jeopardizes much-needed community development aimed at improving health outcomes and community infrastructure.

Meanwhile, we have House and Senate members with average annual base salaries of $174,000, many with a laissez-faire approach to government spending, who benefit from a surplus of tax- payer-funded dividends including access to gold-tier health care for only $49 to $66 per month for individual coverage, and $66 to $264 per month for family coverage, less than the average weekly grocery bill.

As average citizens suffer the consequences of income loss and struggle to pay more for daily expenses, the administration is spending billions on a masked immigration police force, soon to be the largest in the country, to round up immigrants working on construction sites, farms, and Home Depots across the country detaining them at “Alligator Alcatraz” and other detention centers.

Most of us come from somewhere else. A July 2024 estimate from the U.S. Census Bureau shows that only 1.1%-1.3% of Americans are indigenous to this land—how conveniently and quickly we forget!

“THESE are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered…” —Thomas Paine

Sincerely,

Cynthia Ebben