Latest from Lamar, Notes from the Senate Desk

*Im**portant news
from this week:*

-
This week, I asked [link 1] U.S. Health and
Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar about the specific steps the
Trump Administration and state and local health systems are taking to
protect Americans against the coronavirus.

-
The U.S. Senate
confirmed Katherine MacGregor, with my support, who is President Trump's
nominee to serve as Deputy Secretary of the Department of Interior. In her
confirmation hearing, she expressed her strong support and the Trump
Administration's strong support for the Restore Our Parks Act -
legislation I introduced [link 2] that would be the greatest help to our
national parks, including the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, in 50
years.

-
Governor Bill Lee and the Tennessee Department of
Environment and Conservation announced that more than six thousand acres of
land will be added to the Justin P. Wilson Cumberland Trail State Park,
ensuring even more of Tennessee's beautiful land, water resources and
recreation areas will be available for future generations to
enjoy.

*Protecting Americans against the Coronavirus*

[image =
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**
Click here [link 4] or on the above image to hear my conversation with
U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar **

This week, I
talked with U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar
about the specific steps the Trump Administration and state and local
health systems are taking to protect Americans against the coronavirus
- a viral disease that was first detected in Wuhan, China. The
Administration is doing an excellent job of keeping Americans safe so
far--in other countries this virus has spread at an alarming rate, but an
effective effort in our country has limited the number of cases to 15.
On Wednesday, President Trump announced Vice President Pence will lead
the Administration's response to the coronavirus, and I agree with him
that putting a vice president who was once a governor in charge of an
effort that depends on federal, state and local cooperation makes
sense as a way to continue to keep Americans safe. As chairman of the
Senate health committee, I will continue to work to make sure that the
Administration is implementing the preparedness and response framework
for emerging public health threats that Congress has already provided.
Next Tuesday, my committee is holding a hearing to find out more about
what the Administration is doing to prevent spread of the coronavirus
and what steps have been taken to coordinate the federal
response.



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Even on the busiest weeks, Tennessee Tuesday
is a priority for me and Senator Marsha Blackburn. We enjoy welcoming
Tennesseans to our nation's capital. Sign up here [link 5] if you're
in Washington on a Tuesday and come by and see us.








*Trump Administration committed to ending surprise medical billing*

I
also received a commitment [link 6] from HHS Secretary Azar that
passing my legislation to end the practice of medical billing - which
affects one in five emergency room patients - is a top priority of the
Trump Administration. Surprise medical billing occurs when a patient
receives a bill in the mail for hundreds or thousands of dollars that they
didn't expect because while the hospital the patient went to was
in-network, the doctor who treated them was not. Secretary Azar said that
ending surprise billing is a "very high priority for the president"
and that we need to get a bipartisan, bicameral solution passed into
law. I agree and will continue to work with House committees and Senators
to bring a bill to the president's desk.





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I had a great meeting with the ladies of Delta Sigma
Theta this week. I always appreciate meeting with them and hearing their
concerns.









*Protecting an important path to the
middle class
*

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) released
a final rule this week that is good news for the men and women
operating our nation's 733,000 franchise establishments. The ability to own
and operate a franchise is one of the best opportunities Americans have
to work their way into the middle class, but a decision by the
Obama-era NLRB threatened that opportunity. Under the Obama-era standard,
companies can find it much more practical to own all their stores and
restaurants and day care centers themselves, rather than encourage more
franchisee-owned small businesses. The final rule returns to the
standard that existed for decades which required that a business must
actually exercise direct control over employees' terms and conditions of
employment to be considered a "joint employer." The NLRB's final rule
provides clarity and predictability and helps protect this important
path to the middle class for small businessmen and women.



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=
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I had a good meeting with Clay Bright, Commissioner
of the Tennessee Department of Transportation. I appreciate the
important work he does for our state.







*Below are some
articles from this week I thought you would enjoy:*

Rogersville Review:
Over 6K acres added to Cumberland Trail State Park [link
7]

Breitbart: Alex Azar: Trump Committed to Ending Surprise Medical Bills [link
8]

USA Today: Trump puts Vice President Mike Pence in charge of
coronavirus response, says nation is 'very ready' [link 9]



Keep
in mind that enough small steps in the right direction will still get
you where you want to go.

*#139 in Lamar Alexander's Little Plaid
Book*




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Contact Information:


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Location:
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Phone: (202) 224-4944 | Fax: (202) 228-3398

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