Michele Johnson

she/her Executive Director @TNJusticeCenter. Opinion’s are mine alone. Trying 2 make the world a better place as a southern, Catholic, lawyer, runner, mom of 3.

[Michele Johnson @Chelmariejo]

#Medicaidexpansion will transform TN’s economy ($900 M- net) & strengthen our health care infrastructure (#1 in the nation @rural hospital closures). Any elected officials refusing 2 consider it, will pay a steep political price. TNeans are too smart & they hate being beat by AL

[Brett Kelman @BrettKelman]

Under the new Biden stimulus law, Tennessee could expand Medicaid AND save $900 million over two years. The state's Republican lawmakers have prevented expansion for a decade, but are now willing to consider it. Story by me and the great @natalie_allison. https://t.co/oyYpHRcHS6

[FactPost @factpostnews]

Mike Johnson admits Republicans will cut Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security next year

[Katie Bergh @Katie_Bergh]

Secretary Rollins tells the Senate Agriculture Committee that “no one wants kids to be hungry.”

In just the 12 states with available data, the number of children receiving SNAP has fallen by more than 700,000 since the deepest SNAP cuts in history were enacted in H.R. 1.

[Katie Bergh @Katie_Bergh]

A group of former governors in the Senate just released a statement in support of delaying H.R. 1's SNAP cost shift for all states, calling it a "ticking time bomb for state budgets and for millions of low-income families who depend on food assistance." https://t.co/PLKBfRhTCM

[Louise Norris @LouiseNorris]

2027 health insurance rate filings aren't yet public in most states. But there are already at least 7 insurers that have said they're exiting the health insurance Marketplace at the end of 2026, affecting more than 636k enrollees across 17 states: https://t.co/CKDdxc5v2D

[Katie Bergh @Katie_Bergh]

Unbelievably, Secretary Rollins just claimed that "no one has been kicked off SNAP."

Under H.R. 1, low-income people are losing food assistance at the fastest rate in decades — even as the economy hasn't improved & grocery prices are rising.
https://t.co/HUPBlPSUTa

[Gideon Lukens @GidLukens]

More from my colleagues Jen Wagner & Allison Orris on how restricting medical frailty could lead to coverage losses for people w/ serious health conditions: https://t.co/SITmy01S5w

[Michele Johnson @Chelmariejo]

These children deserve better. Shameful assault on our values. Keep calling Gov. Lee at 6157412001. https://t.co/gG0s82Mtbv

[Joan Alker @JoanAlker1]

My statement on the new Medicaid work reporting requirement is below.

Short take: Winners = tech vendors
Losers = 1. people with chronic and acute conditions like cancer and SUD;
2. states trying to implement the rule responsibly.

[Jeni Williams @EditorJeni]

74% of #healthcare providers say prior authorization behavior by payers is worsening, an @hfmaorg / @guidehousehc survey indicates

This is despite a mid-2025 voluntary pledge by health plans to pull back on prior auth

Via @RDalyhealthcare https://t.co/o9LhLaMYR4 #revenuecycle

[Adrianna McIntyre (@adrianna.bsky.social) @onceuponA]

Great story on how states — red and blue — are struggling with the costs of rushing to stand up work requirements.

These concerns could worsen if the IFR (expected this afternoon) includes surprises that contradict implementation choices states have already made

[Joan Alker @JoanAlker1]

My latest blog: Two Million Fewer Children are Enrolled in Medicaid Since Trump Took Office https://t.co/q9eWREAeo4 via @GeorgetownCCF

[Opportunity Wisconsin @OpportunityWI]

Republicans gave tax breaks to billionaires, bragged about ending “waste, fraud, and abuse,”-now kids are paying the price.

700K+ kids lost SNAP access.
1.75M fewer kids are on Medicaid.
2.5M lost food assistance.
Kids are going hungry in Trump’s America.
https://t.co/fCsYnkZB4t

[KFF @KFF]

Medicaid covers nearly 1 in 3 adults with mental illness and nearly half of adults with opioid use disorder in the U.S.

New analysis examines how states expanded services in recent years — and how fiscal pressures may make those gains harder to sustain:https://t.co/eSZiEzKtfd

[Joan Alker @JoanAlker1]

👀 New Proposed Medicaid rule from Trump Administration goes way beyond what Congress put in HR1 and ⬆️ the cuts from $149B to $510B👀

CMS Triples Harmful Impact of HR 1 Medicaid Provider Cuts in State Directed Payment Proposed Rule https://t.co/MwlEeK51pU via @GeorgetownCCF

[Katie Bergh @Katie_Bergh]

Unless the Trump Administration has redefined "the American dream" to mean "losing the help your family needs to afford groceries because of federal cuts," I have some bad news for Secretary Rollins

[Michele Johnson @Chelmariejo]

We can and must do better. Making children starve because of politics is so beneath us as a species.

[Katie Bergh @Katie_Bergh]

NEW: In just the 12 states with available data, the number of children receiving SNAP has fallen by more than 700,000 since H.R. 1's unprecedented SNAP cuts were enacted last July — despite claims from Republican lawmakers that kids wouldn't lose benefits. https://t.co/GHJlzazTTM

[Center on Budget @CenterOnBudget]

CMS proposed a rule that would cap Medicaid payment rates beyond the limits required by H.R. 1, reducing Medicaid enrollees' access to care if finalized. https://t.co/8mVkGvcJ9n

[Tyler Spence @tspencenews]

Senate Democrats have some leverage in negotiations over the farm bill, and they are eyeing a delay of the SNAP cost shift to states as their top priority. Read for @NOTUSreports

https://t.co/AosiMGtznd

[KFF @KFF]

Many states impose cost sharing on certain Medicaid expansion adults and all expansion states will be required to do so by Oct 1, 2028.

Studies show cost sharing reduces utilization of care, including medically necessary care: https://t.co/oTbeKuRcKP

[Larry Levitt @larry_levitt]

Waiting for employers to fully engage on health care costs, both politically and in the marketplace, has kind of been like waiting for Godot.