State Assembly member and Filipino American representative, citing her own childhood experience with her father’s death, is speaking out against proposed federal health care cuts. The lawmaker warns that the loss of insurance for half a million New Yorkers under federal policy changes could mirror the financial and personal catastrophes faced by families lacking access to specialized medical care.
Personal history and the cost of care
The Assembly member, who became the first Filipino American to hold statewide office, traces her advocacy to the 1991 death of her father, Andres H. Raga. According to her account, the family struggled with medical expenses after her father was diagnosed with a terminal illness shortly after they arrived in the U.S. Because their family insurance did not cover the specialized care required to extend his life, the family faced a choice between mounting debt and the lack of treatment. To avoid placing a financial burden on his family for hospice and funeral costs, Andres H. Raga traveled to the Philippines, where he died at age 44 on Feb. 28, 1991.
The impact of proposed health insurance cuts
The legislator is drawing a parallel between her family’s past medical crisis and current federal proposals. She states that the H.R. 1 emergency, specifically President Donald Trump’s planned cuts to the state’s Essential Plan, threatens to strip health insurance from 500,000 New Yorkers. She characterizes this shift as a potential health care catastrophe. Her mother, Adela Cabildo Raga, who raised her as a single mother following the death of her father, struggled with financial instability and several evictions in Queens before eventually securing economic stability through her membership in the Teamsters.
What could happen if coverage is lost
Analysts and observers suggest that if the Essential Plan cuts proceed, the immediate consequence for half a million residents could be a sudden loss of coverage for essential medical services. For families already managing tight budgets, the removal of this coverage may necessitate difficult choices similar to those faced by the Raga family in 1991. Without the safety net provided by the state plan, it is likely that many households could encounter severe financial strain or be forced to forgo specialized treatments that are not otherwise affordable. The Assembly member’s testimony serves as a warning of the long-term emotional and economic toll such policy decisions may impose on the most vulnerable New Yorkers.
