Author: Samuel McCullar
Over two years after the overturn of Roe v. Wade, the facts are showing exactly what pro choice activists had expected: A massive increase in needless deaths of mothers and infants. Along with attacks on abortion, many other aspects of Arkansas healthcare and quality of life have also been quietly under attack. The reason for this is evident: To rollback state funded programs in the service of capitalism.
Just how “Pro Life” is Arkansas?
Since the 2022 ban on nearly all abortions after Row v. Wade was overturned, doctors and many others have cried out against what is becoming a medical crisis in the state of Arkansas. However, humanitarian crisis is nothing particularly new to the state, with the growing teen birth rate (87% higher than the national average) according to the Arkansas Advocate, as well as having the third highest infant mortality rate in the nation as of 2022, with 7.67 infant deaths per 1,000 live births according to the CDC. In fact the 2023 Arkansas Maternal Mortality Review Committee (AMMRC) Legislative Report found that 92% of pregnancy related deaths were “likely preventable.” In the state an estimated number of 567,110 people are facing hunger (168,430 of them being children) that is 1 out of every 5 people or 1 in 4 children going hungry every day in our state.
In March, Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders launched a program to address maternal health standards in the state. She had been quoted on saying it was an issue “we’ve ignored for far too long,” however, much akin to her quote, she has ignored the findings of her own program. In section Two of the “Arkansas Strategic Committee For Maternal Health” the Committee found that “Medicaid covers 50-60 percent of all pregnancies in Arkansas annually. These reforms aim to ensure pregnant women and new mothers have clear and convenient access to coverage and care.” Governor Sanders has refused to support extending Medicaid postpartum coverage to a year from 60 days, saying the states existing insurance system “was enough” Arkansas is one of only two states to have not adopted this coverage.
In fact, Arkansas is one of two states to have actually taken coverage away from people for “not meeting work requirements.” In 2018 the Trump Administration encouraged states to adopt policies taking Medicaid coverage away from people not meeting these requirements. This policy resulted in more than 18,000 people (nearly 1 in 4) of those subject to work requirements losing their coverage over the course of only seven months.
Evidence suggests that people who were working, or those working with serious health needs who should have been eligible for exemptions, lost their coverage or were at risk of losing coverage due to red tape. Large amounts of beneficiaries in the state reported that “they didn’t know about the work requirement or whether it applied to them.” Those with disabilities were at a particular risk as well.
Studies have found the Arkansas work requirement increased uninsured rates without increasing employment. Another survey found that taking coverage away from those not meeting requirements also increased financial hardship and reduced access to care. It goes without saying that there are many, many more examples of policies in the state that reduce the well being of our residents.
The Issues are clear, Arkansans are all very aware that the current situation is a disaster and must be resolved. The question remains however what is to be done?
The answer is to mobilize, organize and demand not just the restoration of abortion rights, but a complete overhaul of our healthcare system. In order to win more than basic concession, we must fight for a socialist system that values public health before profit. Only through collective action, community organizing and the building of class consciousness can we build a future in which healthcare is more than a bargaining chip of the owning classes, left out of the hands of the people to decide for themselves. Only with the building of a workers party and workers movement can be hope to win a future in which healthcare is a universal right and our lives are worth more than corporate profit.
Committee of Labor for Arkansas Workers Party 