Alexander Liu is a UNO student completing the final year of his undergraduate program before they attend law school. As an intersectional minority himself, Alexander is fiercely dedicated to advocating for the civil rights of marginalized communities. He holds leadership positions in various caucuses and committees within the Nebraska Democratic Party and, as one of the active core members, is also involved in many Omaha DSA Workgroups. Without the support of Medicaid and Medicare, doctors wouldn’t have found his brain tumor, and it would have killed him. Without social safety net programs, he wouldn’t have been able to afford the surgery to treat it, either, or pay for basic necessities—like food for his service dog, Keigo, who performs life-saving medical alert tasks for him. 

Amanda is a community advocate from Lincoln, Nebraska, and a co-sponsor of the state’s Medicaid expansion campaign. After experiencing a heart attack in her 20s, Amanda continues to navigate complex medical issues and relies on a gluten-free diet to manage her health. Medicaid and SNAP help her access the health care and nutrition she needs, but cuts to these essential benefits this year have made it harder to get the support she depends on.

Drawing on her own experiences navigating Nebraska DHHS’s complicated documentation processes, Amanda helps her family and neighbors understand the system and access the resources they need. She also helps neighbors access food pantries without shame, believing everyone deserves access to food and health care with dignity. Through sharing her story, Amanda continues to advocate for Nebraskans and raise awareness of how changes to essential programs affect people in her community.

A.T. has been guardian for their disabled adult brother, Stephen, for twenty years and has served as the Chief Diversity Officer at UNO and Professor of History and Professor of Communication, Fine Arts, and Media.  They are currently part of the leadership of OutNebraska and lives near downtown Omaha in Little Italy.  They are active in the arts and perform as a poet and musician, while also enjoying the outdoors.  With husband, Craig, they were plaintiffs in the ACLU lawsuit for partner benefits in the state of Michigan and have been together over 25 years. Stephen's care would cost at least five figures monthly but for the support of medicare and medicaid along with social security disability and SNAP benefits, and resides in a supported living situation.

Audrey is a proud South Omaha native, Omaha South High School graduate, and University of Nebraska at Omaha alumna. She spent more than 30 years working in the financial services and credit card industry before retiring seven years ago to dedicate her time to volunteering and giving back to her community. Today, she and her husband rely on Affordable Care Act coverage, as he works as a superintendent for a small general contractor without health insurance through his employer. With her husband managing several pre-existing health conditions, she understands firsthand the importance of affordable, accessible health care. Their ACA insurance has gone up $680, adding to the cost of keeping her husband covered and healthy. All six of Audrey’s grandchildren are also on Medicaid, and two of them have already lost their coverage.

I am a cattle rancher whose family's business was born from the Homestead Act and have been in business since 1888.  The ACA brought us slightly higher healthcare insurance premiums, but much more comprehensive coverage. Starting after ACA was enacted, we would change our plan and our utilized subsidy about every year according to cattle prices and whether we anticipated big medical procedures in the coming year.  We always qualified for a subsidy.  It helped when years were lean and we would either go with high premium, low out-of-pocket or vice-versa. This year our premiums jumped a thousand dollars a month with the plan we chose.

I am a member of the (Dept. of Agriculture) appointed CBB.  (Cattlemen's Beef Board) and a former FSA State Committee member (under Biden).  I am also a former 20 year member of a union under the Railway Labor Act, and I carry a Nebraska and Colorado Teachers Cert.  

I have been sick for as long as I remember. When I turned 14, my nervous system began to shut down—first paralyzing my stomach, then allowing me to become malnourished, even when eating. When I turned 16, I had a stroke-like event, forcing me to use a walker. Further diseases piled on: liver disease, cyclic vomiting syndrome, chronic migraines and ulcers, PCOS, Pots, autonomic and peripheral neuropathy, macular edema, and papillary thyroid carcinoma as of this year. Hospital visits were frequent as we tried to discover what was going on, and I had the fear of a life consumed by medical debt that I could never hope to pay off.

I am very thankful to be eligible for a low income program through my hospital that allows me to get these expensive treatments that are not covered. Regardless of its problems, mostly due to underfunding, I am incredibly lucky to be on Medicaid.

Chris is a Papillion resident who has spent more than 30 years building small nonprofits and advocating for Nebraskans, including through her work with Nebraskans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty. With a degree in education, she has also worked in social services supporting caregivers and people with disabilities.

Chris was married for 36 years to a Marine who served in Desert Storm. After his service, he became a claims adjuster, setting aside his creative dreams to provide health insurance for their family. Despite their work, Chris recalls feeling like they were always one paycheck away from homelessness. After losing her job following her husband's passing, Chris has gone five years without health insurance. Today, she lives on Social Security and worries about whether it will be there in the years ahead. As she approaches Medicare eligibility at 65, she hopes the program will still be there when she needs it. After decades of helping others to access health care and economic stability, Chris is learning the challenges in helping ourselves.

Erika is a Fremont small business owner and mother of two who grew up in North Platte, Nebraska, in a family that experienced generations of poverty. For the past six years, she has operated her own business providing Reiki, somatic healing, and life coaching while pursuing an associate degree in liberal arts at Metropolitan Community College. She hopes to become a therapist.

As a working mother and Medicaid recipient, Erika and her children rely on Medicaid, and she has experienced the rollercoaster of gaining and losing access to benefits as her income changes. Before becoming a business owner, she worked early in her career at the DHHS call center for economic assistance in Fremont, giving her firsthand insight into the challenges and power imbalances families face when navigating public benefits. Today, rising living costs continue to affect her family, with utilities doubling to $400–$500 a month. Through her experiences as a mother, entrepreneur, and Medicaid recipient, she hopes to bring attention to the challenges Nebraskans face while working toward financial stability.

I took Commercial Art at Southeast Community College. I have lived in many places, of which Germany for nearly 7 years was my favorite. While there, I traveled all over Europe and have been back to the states for 20 years now. I have met many wonderful people all over the world which I think has given me a much wider view of the world and has kept me with an open mind. Life is not a competition or a race. Life is hard enough on a good day. We need to help each other to live our best lives.

My name is Melinda, but I go by Mindy; I'm 50 years old. I am married, and I have two grown adult children that are living with us to help with costs. Right now, my biggest concerns are my medical issues, and without health care subsidies, I'm screwed. I have two surgeries I have been trying to schedule for years, and now it will be harder. I am a survivor of sexual, mental, and physical abuse as well as domestic violence, and I'm still trying to heal.

I am a 2nd Year Low Voltage Instructor with Lincoln Electrical JATC. I am also IBEW 265 Registrar and Executive Board Member, as well as Lincoln DSA Steering Committee Member. Bass playing Lincolnite for 24 years, originally from Hobbs, NM.