Dear Democratic Colleague,
Thanks to the leadership and persistence of Chairs Rosa DeLauro and Patrick Leahy, this week the Congress will take up a robust government funding bill that helps meet the needs of America’s working families.
Proudly, Democrats’ tenacious negotiating has yielded a significant increase in non-defense discretionary funding — larger than the boost we won in last March’s government funding bill. This means that we will be able to make historic investments in our families, workers and communities.
Key Democratic victories on health care include:
- Ensuring permanent, mandatory and continuous coverage for the 40 million children enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP.
- Record Medicaid funding for Puerto Rico and permanent enhanced Medicaid funding for all other territories, helping expand affordable, quality care to more Americans.
- Historic funding for the critical Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting initiative, which improves health outcomes for pregnant people and young families who live in underserved communities.
- Strong guardrails to prevent disruption to families’ health coverage, as states resume Medicaid recertifications next year.
- New investments in mental health services, which will improve access to medication-assisted treatment, expand our mental health workforce and increase coverage of mental health services.
- Improving diversity in FDA clinical trials and providing FDA regulation of cosmetics.
- Passing the PREVENT Pandemics Act, which uses lessons learns from COVID-19 to improve our preparedness for future public health emergencies.
As you know, funding for our heroic veterans falls under non-defense discretionary funding. Importantly, we have secured $21 billion increase for veterans’ health care – including supporting the VA as it implements our landmark PACT Act.
Additional key Democratic victories include:
- Creating a nationwide permanent Summer EBT Program so that 29 million kids can get healthy, nutritious meals throughout the summer.
- For the first time in more than a decade, more funding for the National Labor Relations Board, which helps defend the right to organize.
- Emergency disaster support to help victims of hurricanes and wildfires throughout our country, to address the water crisis in Jackson, Mississippi, and $1 billion for Puerto Rico’s electrical grid.
- Reforming the Electoral Count Act of 1887, which will help thwart future attempts to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power like we saw on January 6th.
- Critical Community Project Funding, to support vital projects that meet the needs of our families in our districts.
Significantly, this package includes strong defense funding to increase pay for our valiant troops, meet the basic needs of our military families and ensure our national security. We are proud to deliver another consequential round of security, economic and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine, as we continue to support their fight for Democracy.
It is urgent and necessary that we enact this omnibus package, so that we may keep government open and delivering for America’s families.
The 117th Congress has been one of the most consequential in recent history. As we conclude it on a strong note, thank you for your continued leadership For The People.
NANCY
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