A national bus tour protesting Republican efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act is passing through New Mexico. The campaign held a rally in Albuquerque Wednesday.
Kathleen Chavez is a small business owner in Albuquerque. She and her son signed up for coverage under the ACA鈥檚 Medicaid expansion, and was one of the local speakers at Wednesday鈥檚 rally.
"How am I going to send my son to the doctor?" she said. "He sees an occupational therapist, speech therapist, he gets orthodontic work, he has glasses. I don鈥檛 know what I would do if the ACA was repealed. I honestly think that we both will lose our health insurance."
By this summer New Mexico鈥檚 Medicaid enrollment is expected to top 900,000. The Trump administration has said it plans to change Medicaid to a block grant system, a move that the New Mexico nurse and hospital worker union says could put health care at risk for people here.
Healthcare advocates at the rally said repealing the ACA would impact the more than 50,000 people in New Mexico who have signed up for individual plans too.
