In Ellensburg, Murray Highlights Importance of Rural Healthcare, Rejecting Trump & Republican Cuts to Medicaid

Murray met with health care provider from Kittitas Valley Healthcare, for whom she was able to secure $2.26 million in CDS to support patient care; Murray visited to get an update on the status of rural health care in Washington state as she continues to work to repeal Trump's Medicaid cuts and lower premiums

ICYMI: Murray Secures Hundreds of Millions for Transportation & Housing Projects Across WA in Final Appropriations Bills; Boosts Funding for Medical Research, Housing, Child Care & More

***PHOTOS AND B-ROLL HERE***

Ellensburg, WA - Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, toured Kittitas Valley Healthcare and held a roundtable discussion with local health care leaders to talk about how the $2.26 million she secured in Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS) will help modernize patient care, highlighting the importance of investing in rural healthcare. In the roundtable discussion, Senator Murray and health care leaders talked about the state of rural health care and the challenges facing providers and patients in Central Washington following the massive health care cuts passed through Trump's Big Ugly Bill and the expiration of the ACA tax credits.

Murray was joined by Jason Adler, Kittitas Valley Healthcare CEO; Dr. Andrew Thomas, Kittitas Valley Healthcare Chief Medical Officer; DeDe Feddema, Kittitas Valley Healthcare Emergency Services Director and Nurse; Mitchell Rhodes, Kittitas County Health Network Executive Director; and Kristl Densley, Kittitas Valley Healthcare Director of Community Relations.

"Last year, we saw Republicans pass the single largest cut to health care in our nation's history-with rural hospitals taking the biggest hit," said Senator Murray. "I was glad to secure some funding for Kittitas Valley Healthcare directly. But unfortunately, this funding pales in comparison to the scope of the Medicaid cuts Trump passed and the refusal by Republicans to extend the ACA tax credits. Today's conversation underscores just how much things are headed in the wrong direction for rural hospitals-Congress must repeal Trump's Medicaid cuts and focus on making health care affordable, not funding a war in Iran. We didn't get here by accident-President Trump and a Republican Congress chose to pass the largest cuts to Medicaid in history, they chose to let the ACA tax credits expire, and now they're choosing to fund a war in Iran rather than spend a cent on making health care more affordable."

Kittitas Valley Healthcare provides invaluable support to rural communities in Central Washington, serving thousands of patients annually. With the funding secured by Senator Murray, Kittitas Valley Healthcare is able to renovate and expand clinical space for orthopedic and surgical services, helping modernize care for patients.

When combining all of the Fiscal Year 2026 funding bills Murray authored and passed, she secured nearly $500 million in CDS for WA projects and has helped set aside over $5 billion in programmatic funding for Washington state.

"We've effectively created a second healthcare system, one for patient care and one for managing reimbursement. KVH employs 1.3 FTE's of administrative staff tied to revenue cycle functions per employed nurse, which is not where healthcare resources should be going," said Jason Adler, MBA, FACHE, Chief Executive Officer, Kittitas Valley Healthcare.

"Every rural community deserves access to a physician. Right now, federal policies make it hard for young clinicians to choose rural practice. With the right investments at the federal level, we can solve that problem," said Andrew Thomas, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Kittitas Valley Healthcare. "The patients in Kittitas County cannot drive to Seattle for their primary care. The question is whether federal policy will decide that those patients deserve the same access to care as patients living in King County."

"Emergency nursing is an incredibly rewarding profession. I have always felt it is a privilege to care for people during hard moments of life. But I've watched our healthcare environment change over the years, adding more stress to the lives of our patients and to the people caring for them. Nursing has always been hard work, but it feels even harder today, especially in rural emergency departments where resources are limited," said Dede Feddema, MSN, RN, CEN, Director of Emergency Services, Kittitas Valley Healthcare. "Caring for our behavioral health patients is something I'm deeply committed to. They deserve safe, respectful care. At the same time, the risk of violence in the workplace is a reality we face every day. Our nurses care and they want to be here, but I am concerned that the way things are right now it is leading many of our staff to burnout. If we don't make real changes, we're going to lose our most precious resource-our staff."

"Health-focused nonprofits in Washington play a vital role in providing access to healthcare in rural communities by addressing gaps with innovative and adaptive strategies. Despite the important role we play, healthcare focused nonprofits are at a critical crossroads. By my count, in 2024 there were 26 programmatic, health focused grant opportunities at the federal level that organizations like KCHN or KVH could apply for, that number dropped to 9 in 2025, and 2 thus far in 2026. Lack of available funding opportunities puts increased pressure on already strained nonprofit and health systems," Mitchell Rhodes, PhD, Executive Director, Kittitas County Health Network. "Kittitas County has made great strides in meeting the needs of our community, however as funding continues to decrease, there is increased risk of organizations abandoning collaborative approaches, reducing services, and/or ending operations all together in communities that already have extremely limited resources."

"We may be a small valley in the center of the state, but there is nothing small about our vision, our commitment, or the care we provide. Our needs are real, our challenges are complex, and our people show up every day with a level of care, grit, and compassion that reflects the very best of who we are. This is our home, this is my home, and we show up for it with pride, with purpose, and with a quiet excellence that speaks for itself," said Kristl Densley, Director of Community Relations, Kittitas Valley Healthcare.

ABOUT TRUMP'S MEDICAID CUTS:

Nationwide, the Republican health care cuts represent a more than $400 billion hit to America's hospitals-with one estimate finding that over 170 rural hospitals will likely be forced to close or scale back their services, which will force more Americans to travel further for maternity care and emergency rooms, and face longer wait times. Washington state is one of the states most at-risk, with 22 hospitals at-risk of closing or reducing services. An estimated 477,000 health workers will lose their jobs as a result of the Republican cuts to Medicaid. Senator Murray has consistently advocated for rural health care across the state, hosting numerous events to emphasize the importance of investment into rural communities.

Hospitals in Washington state could lose at least $662 million in Medicaid revenue every year under OBBBA-forcing hospitals to lay off staff, cut services, or close their doors entirely. Overall, Washington state is expected to lose between $31 billion and $51 billion in federal Medicaid dollars over the next decade. In 2024, Washington had an uninsured rate of 4.8 percent-the lowest in the country-but the Republican bill is expected to balloon that number into the double digits.

ABOUT GOP REFUSAL TO EXTEND ACA TAX CREDITS:

In Washington state, nearly 2 million people-roughly 1 in 5-are enrolled in Apple Health, the state's Medicaid program. Washington's 4^th Congressional District has the highest Medicaid enrollment in Washington state, with nearly 300,000 people-38 percent of all residents-reliant on Apple Health, including 70 percent of all children in the state. Over 36,000 fewer Washingtonians enrolled in health insurance through the state's health care exchange, Washington Healthplanfinder. Over 51,000 fewer Washingtonians are using federal tax credits to get their health care coverage.

Senator Murray forced the issue of the ACA tax credits at every opportunity before Republicans ultimately refused to take any action, speaking out nonstop about the urgent need to save health care and calling on Republicans to come to the negotiating table to work out a bipartisan deal to extend the ACA tax credits. She took to the Senate floor in November with her Democratic colleagues to call for a clean one-year extension of the ACA tax credits, and held numerous virtual press conferences with Washingtonians, as well as residents of neighboring states Idaho and Montana, about the exploding health care premiums that Americans are seeing due to the expiration of the tax credits. As the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Murray led legislation supported by the Democratic caucus that would have addressed the health care crisis during the government shutdown last fall. Senator Murray has also cosponsored multiple pieces of legislation over the past year-the Health Care Affordability Act and the Protecting Health Care and Lowering Costs Act-that would make the ACA tax credits permanent.

Senator Murray played a critical role in passing the ACA enhanced premium tax credits into law in the American Rescue Plan Act in 2021 and extending them in the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022.

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