(The Hill) — Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) doubled down on a recent quip about Medicaid in a Saturday post on her Instagram story.
“Hello, everyone. I want to take this moment to genuinely apologize for a remark I made yesterday at my town hall,” Ernst expressed in the clip, adopting a sarcastic tone.
On Friday, the Iowa Republican faced boos after dismissing life-threatening concerns regarding cuts to Medicaid, a public health insurance program for low-income families and individuals with disabilities.
“I was in the midst of answering a question posed by an audience member, when a deeply upset woman shouted from the back corner of the auditorium, claiming people are going to die,” Ernst stated on Saturday.
“And I made an incorrect assumption that everyone in the auditorium understood that, yes, we are all going to perish from this earth. So I apologize, and I’m really, really glad that I did not have to bring up the subject of the tooth fairy as well,” she continued.
The Iowa lawmaker then encouraged viewers who want to see “eternal and everlasting life” to “embrace” Jesus Christ.
During her Friday event in Butler, Iowa, Ernst promised that Republicans would “protect” social services for the most vulnerable.
She suggested that those who work and have opportunity for benefits elsewhere “receive those benefits elsewhere” and leave taxpayer dollars for those eligible for Medicaid.
Under the current GOP-House passed spending bill, millions would lose access to healthcare if passed by the Senate.
“Children will get hurt. Women will get hurt. Older Americans who rely on Medicaid for nursing home care and for home care will get hurt. People with disabilities who rely on Medicaid to survive will get hurt,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said during the debate on the bill, according to Politico.
“Hospitals in your districts will close. Nursing homes will shut down. And people will die. That’s not hype. That’s not hyperbole. That’s not a hypothetical,” he added.
Every Democrat who voted in the House, voted against the bill.
Some Senate Republicans have pledged to make some edits to the legislation, objecting to changes to Medicaid, the proposed phaseout of clean energy incentives and an increase in the federal debt.
