Opinion: Headed To DC To Talk Big Beautiful Bill

Next week, AARP Wyoming State Volunteer President Stella Montano and myself will be boarding a plane for our nation’s Capital to ask our congressional delegation to back provisions of The Big Beautiful Bill supportive to older adults.

We strongly support the increase to the bonus standard deduction for older Americans, which would provide tax relief at a time when many seniors are facing financial strain. We support expanding Section 45S Tax Credits for paid family and medical leave as it will help more Americans who are family caregivers. We applaud the new investment in affordable housing through the expansion of the low-income housing tax credit.

However, we have areas of concern with the bill too. Congress is considering health care proposals in its budget bill that would make Medicaid harder to enroll in and easier to lose coverage, all because of bureaucratic red tape. In Wyoming, Medicaid helps about 11,000 low-income adults ages 50 and over, including 7,000 ages 65 and older. Among these are approximately 1,800 older adults in Wyoming who use home and community-based services. These services include home care aides, certain transportation services, and assistive technology to age in-place. Another 1,600 older adults in Wyoming use Medicaid to pay for their nursing home care.

Congress is also proposing cuts to food assistance, which helps millions of older adults put food on the table, particularly as they face rising food prices and financial strain. SNAP is the nation’s largest antihunger program. Individuals and families who meet certain income and asset thresholds qualify for benefits to purchase food. Access to SNAP has been linked to better health outcomes, and reduced hospital and nursing home admissions among older adults, resulting in millions of dollars in savings for taxpayers. According to the USDA, 2,553 Wyomingites age 60 and over use SNAP.

If you want to join us in our work, email your lawmakers now and as they reject cuts that would make life harder for older adults by visiting aarp.org/RejectCuts

Sincerely,
Sam Shumway
AARP Wyoming State Director