Residents urge Allegany County legislators to oppose federal cuts to Medicaid and education funding

Four residents used the public‑comment period at the Allegany County Board of Legislators meeting to plead with legislators to push back against proposed federal cuts to Medicaid and the U.S. Department of Education and to prepare local contingency plans.

Martie Sabato, a retired teacher from Rushford, asked legislators to urge Congressman Nick Langworthy to oppose what she described as “draconian cuts” to Medicaid and highlighted local reliance on Medicaid across age groups, calling attention to the effect on children, seniors and people with disabilities. Sabato cited packet data she said showed more than 20,000 children in New York’s 23rd Congressional District depend on CHIP, estimating roughly 272 children in Allegany County rely on that program.

Maria Harold of Canaseraga (transcript: Caneyadilla) said nursing homes in the county rely heavily on Medicaid—she cited a state figure that 64 percent of nursing home residents rely on Medicaid—and warned that loss of Medicaid funding could force local hospitals and services to reduce offerings or close. She named Jones Memorial Hospital and other local facilities as vulnerable if payer mix changes reduced revenue, and described ripple effects for ambulance transport and other services.

Retired teacher Lily Milliman of Fillmore emphasized risks to schools if Department of Education funding were eliminated. She said 19 schools and BOCES serve Allegany County students and that those programs collectively receive about $13.5 million in Department of Education funding (as listed on the county website), including funds for Title I, IDEA special‑education programs and universal prekindergarten. She urged the county to advocate to federal representatives to protect that funding.

Patty McEwen of Hume recalled a county press release acknowledging potential federal funding risks and urged a stronger follow-up from the board, asking legislators to use their “bully pulpit,” review county budgets for possible backstops and act quickly if services are cut. She and other speakers requested the board prepare contingency planning for potential loss of Medicaid, USDA, Department of Education and other federal funding streams.

Board members acknowledged the comments and said county officials and department heads are watching developments in Washington. Chair W. Brooke Harris read a proclamation earlier in the meeting and legislators said they will continue to monitor funding matters; no formal board action or directive to staff beyond general monitoring was recorded during the meeting.

Speakers provided several quantitative figures during their remarks (estimated county-level figures were described as likely or probable by the speakers rather than as board findings): Rushford’s Medicaid reliance was cited at roughly 21 percent, CHIP statewide counts for the congressional district were described as “over 20,000,” the district’s Medicaid expansion coverage was given as 140,000 people and dual‑eligible counts were described as nearly 60,000 for the congressional district. The meeting transcript also included speakers’ estimates of potential uninsured‑rate increases and local impacts; the board did not confirm those estimates during the session.