The Rev. Manuel Williams of Resurrection Catholic Church, featured in the American Cancer Society’s (ACS) film project “Requiring Justice: Faith and the Coverage Gap,” believes now is the right time to appeal to Gov. Kay Ivey’s faith to expand Medicaid as part of her legacy.

Given Ivey’s term ends in 2027, Williams said, “we’re at a tipping point,” and there’s a need for “more friendly pressure, more advocacy.”

In the film, he and several other Christian ministers discuss how healing the sick was one of Jesus’ imperatives. The film was recently screened and discussed in Montgomery, and there will be future screenings in Huntsville Saturday morning and in Birmingham on Sept. 23.

Williams said there were approximately 40 people at the previous screening. He said party affiliation, race, economic status, and insurance status aren’t factors in who supports Medicaid expansion.

“This is an Alabama program that will vastly improve the lives of all Alabamians,” Williams said. “Not just the poor, not just people of color, not just those on the margins, but all of us.”

According to Jane Adams, Alabama’s government relations director for the ACS Cancer Action Network, the strong coalition of organizations such as Cover Alabama pushing for expanding Medicaid to approximately 200,000 Alabamians made producing these films a simple process.

“The stories that we heard from faith leaders were really compelling to us and made us want to speed up the timeline and make sure this is relevant information that gets out to the public and gets out those who are interested in this issue,” Adams said. She added faith leaders have appealed to the governor’s office in the past, but, like Williams, she’s optimistic this latest push will make a difference.

“We’ve always taken Gov. Ivey at her word,” Adams said. “Any time she’s spoken publicly about Medicaid expansion, she said it’s not an issue of right or wrong, it’s an issue of cost.” She said the current burden of healthcare costs to individuals is more significant.

Alabama is one of 10 states that have chosen not to expand Medicaid. The expansion would cover people who can’t afford private insurance but make too much money to qualify for Medicaid under current eligibility requirements. Estimates show that Alabama would pay $225 million annually if Gov. Ivey expanded Medicaid. However, federal incentives and expense reductions would increase the state’s budget. Studies have shown Medicaid expansion increases overall workforce participation rates, an issue which Adams said Ivey is focused on currently.

“In our state, there are tens of thousands of workers who would be working if they were only healthy enough to work,” Adams said. “There’s a moral and just imperative to close the coverage gap. But also, there is a financial benefit to closing the coverage gap.”

The film will be screened at the Human Rights Film Festival at the University of Alabama in Huntsville at 11 Saturday in Morton Hall 147. The next screening is 5 p.m. on Sept. 23 at the Civil Rights Institute in Birmingham. For more information on the ACS’ Medicaid expansion campaign, visit the Medicaid Covers US website.