REGIONAL— Union representatives and elected officials from the Iron Range rallied outside the Fairview Range Medical Center in Hibbing on Thursday to make clear they’re still in the fight to maintain access to rural and small-town health care. 
“We won’t be silent,” said Sandy Wallin, president of the AFSCME retirees’ organization in northeastern Minnesota. “We won’t be sacrificed, and we’re fighting for our care, our families and our future, and we are not going to back down.”
About 50 sign-wielding union members and others joined Wallin at the demonstration, organized by AFSCME, to voice their concerns about the unprecedented cuts to the federal safety net enacted into law earlier this month. 
The new law, which is projected to cut approximately $1 trillion from federal Medicaid spending over the next ten years, is expected to eliminate health coverage for nearly 12 million Americans — impacting both patients as well as the hospitals and clinics that rely on Medicaid payments. As several speakers at the event noted, rural and small-town facilities tend to rely more heavily on Medicaid dollars because a higher percentage of their patient caseload is dependent on federal programs like Medicare and Medicaid.
“Twenty to 25 percent of our hospital’s revenue comes from Medicaid dollars,” noted Dawn Buffin, president of AFSCME Local 1119-1, who works at Fairview Range. “Can you imagine if you personally lost 25 percent of your income?” she asked. She noted that hospitals and clinics across the state are projected to lose a combined $2 billion as a result of the new law, and she said that will impact families all across the state. 
“This is a targeted assault on Minnesotans who work hard every day,” said Mike Larson, president of AFSCME Local 1426. “And why? So big billionaires can get bigger?” he asked, noting that the cuts to Medicaid were implemented to help pay for the extension of the Trump tax cuts, which overwhelmingly benefit the wealthy.
Wallin, who said she utilizes Scenic Rivers in Cook as her primary health care provider, voiced particular concern about how the cuts could impact the Scenic Rivers system, which maintains small community health centers in several very small communities in northern Minnesota, including Cook and Tower.
“We already drive long distances for basic care,” she said. “And now Congress just passed a budget that makes things worse. Under these conditions, a facility like Scenic Rivers, which was founded through a federal grant, would have never existed and since it relies on income from Medicaid… it is looking at a $1.3 million cut from this bill.” 
The funding cuts, when they take effect after the 2026 midterm elections, will cost jobs, said Wallin, who estimated that about 6,000 health care workers in Minnesota are likely to be out of work as a result. 
But the impact will be felt most severely by individual patients, noted Hibbing Mayor Pete Hyduke. 
“This isn’t just a policy debate for us,” Hyduke said. “It’s a matter of life and death. The care our neighbors receive, the stability of our hospital and the future of rural health care are all hanging in the balance. Let me be clear, Fairview Range is vital to our region. It provides not only health care but also livelihood. It’s the largest employer in the city of Hibbing, matching the staffing levels of the mines,” said Hyduke. “More than that, it provides critical mental health services and ensures we all have access to care when we need it.”
The federal cuts, which include a major reduction to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP (formerly Food Stamps) in addition to Medicaid, will also impact residents and property taxpayers in St. Louis County, according to County Commissioner Mike Jugovich, who spoke at the rally. 
“I’m not here to bash anyone,” said Jugovich, who describes himself as a political independent. “I’m just here to tell you that we sat in two days of workshops with the St. Louis County Board and staff, looking at how we are going to make this work and it is going to be a challenge and there are going to be cuts.” 
At the same time, Jugovich said, county taxpayers will feel an impact as well as the county will need to raise its levy to address some of the cuts to its own revenue streams. 
“This is going to be a heavy lift,” he said.