UKIAH, CA., 8/29/25 — During Tuesday’s evening rush hour, about 60 protesters lined East Perkins Street near Hospital Drive waving signs and chanting. Cars often honked, people waved, and the protesters bobbed their signs and cheered.
The protest was intended to show disapproval of the recent federal reconciliation bill, aka the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” which cuts more than a trillion dollars in federal Medicaid spending over the next 10 years, according to the Center for American Progress.
Several protesters wore purple shirts, representing the Service Employees International Union in-home supportive services. The protest was sponsored by both Indivisible Ukiah and SEIU 2015.
Janet Rosen, an organizer and spokesperson with Indivisible Ukiah, noted the importance of Medicaid for rural hospitals such as Adventist Health Ukiah Valley.
“Part of why this is so important is that we stand at a very high risk of losing our local health care systems because they are so dependent on the combination of Medicare and Medi-Cal,” Rosen said, explaining that area hospitals and clinics bill Medi-Cal for many services.
Cesar Alvarado, an organizer with SEIU 2015, made a point that the majority of people there protesting were recipients of Medicare or Medi-Cal, both of which are affected by the recent reconciliation bill.
“Hospital Drive and hospital workers will get affected if cuts are coming or are happening,” Alvarado said. “So we are here, just standing in solidarity with hospital workers and caregivers and everybody.”
“We need to organize against what’s happening right now in this country,” Alvarado said. “Many of us came here as immigrants because this was the land of opportunity, the land of freedom, and it feels like it’s no longer that.”
Rosen mentioned that rush hour was an ideal time for a protest to gain attention.
“I had been wanting to do a visibility event somewhere along Perkins at a rush hour, because it gets so many people who never come downtown,” Rosen said.
Mendocino County CEO Darcie Antle is planning a public three-part health summit series to discuss the potential impacts of proposed financial changes to health-related programs and services with local health care providers and public agencies.
The first meeting will be Wednesday, Sept. 10 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Mendocino County Administrative Offices chambers at 501 Low Gap Rd., Ukiah. The next two meetings will be later in the fall and spring 2026.
Whose fault is it that our rural hospitals are so reliant on medi-Cal and Medicare? That would be politicians that let everyone that came in illegally and also Americans who aren’t eligible be on these programs. It made it so hard working people who pay for their insurance can’t even get medical care to right now, like myself and my husband. I got pneumonia a few years back, could only go to the ER and then I could not even get a follow up visit because all doctors around my area weren’t taking new patients with private health insurance. That’s insane giving free medical care to people who just broke the law by coming in illegally and they get help without contributing a dime but I can’t and I pay for it twice; with paying for work insurance and my tax dollars for them to get insurance. Democrat politicians created this mess and then you’re wining about someone who is only removing the ones who never should have received to begin with! Come on and wake up!
Note to sign holder: If you are an American citizen then Trump IS your President. If you are an illegal alien then Trump is not your President.