U.S. Reps. James Walkinshaw (VA-11) and Suhas Subramanyam (VA-10) joined state Sen. Kannan Srinivasan and SEIU union members Oct. 12 at Washington Dulles International Airport to denounce Republican health care cuts. The event marked a Northern Virginia stop on Protect Our Care’s nationwide "Sick of It" bus tour. 

At the rally, Walkinshaw outlined a three-step priority list for Congress: reverse a proposed $1 trillion Medicaid cut, restore middle-class health care tax credits, and lower prescription drug costs. He stressed that the stakes extend beyond those losing coverage directly.

“If you have health care coverage today, your insurance premiums are rising because of these cuts,” Walkinshaw said. “When someone loses their Medicaid, when someone can’t afford their coverage on the Affordable Care Act exchange, your premiums go up, and it’s one of the reasons that premiums across the country are skyrocketing right now.”

The rally brought together contracted airport service workers — including baggage handlers and wheelchair agents — who often rely on Medicaid or go uninsured because they lack employer coverage. Demonstrators urged lawmakers to expand Medicare prescription cost protections and extend ACA tax credits. 

David Broder, executive director of the SEIU Virginia State Council, emphasized the need for both state and federal legislation. 

“We’re calling out this GOP Congress’s devastating cuts to our health care system,” Broder said following the event. “We’re calling for the next Congress to restore those cuts and improve our health care system. And we’re calling on Virginia to pass the Healthy Terminals Act to ensure health care and a living wage for the airport workers who keep us all moving.” 

The stop at Dulles is part of Protect Our Care’s "Care Force One" tour, traveling across 15 states and making over 35 stops to campaign against rising health care costs and coverage losses.