We Owe Veterans the Best Care Possible

          Veterans stood up for us, and it’s our responsibility to stand up for them. That means we need to make sure that every veteran receives the health care and disability compensation they deserve. Unfortunately, for countless veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange during their service, that help and support has not always been within reach.

          “Veterans were exposed to Agent Orange during their service to our country, and we owe them the best care possible,” Jeff said. “Evidence shows that service members were exposed to this toxin as far back as 1967, and it is a complete injustice to exclude them from necessary care. Their sacrifice should be recognized, and they deserve access to the highest quality health care benefits.” 

          Jeff has spent years advocating on behalf of these veterans, including by introducing the Fairness for Korean DMZ Veterans Act of 2019 and other pieces of legislation that would extend benefits to every veteran who was exposed to Agent Orange -- regardless of when or where they served. Last month, Jeff sent a letter to the Department of Veterans’ Affairs to encourage the agency to add four new health conditions to the presumptive list of diseases for which veterans can receive Agent Orange-related benefits: hypertension, hyperthyroidism, bladder cancer, and Parkinson’s disease. 

          Jeff will keep fighting for justice for all of our military men and women who have been affected by Agent Orange and other toxic exposures, and for all of our veterans to receive the benefits they have earned. 

Congress Should Be Protecting Your Privacy

          While technology has made critical improvements to our way of life, economy, and public safety, powerful new emerging technologies -- like facial recognition -- pose serious risks to our privacy and freedoms. 

          China has shown how the technology can be abused by using facial recognition to track the movements of ethnic Uyghurs in China and to single out protesters in Hong Kong for retribution. Moreover, a recent study in the United States shows that Asian and African Americans are up to 100 times more likely to be misidentified by facial recognition than white men. That’s a critical signal that the use of the technology for law enforcement purposes could cause serious harm if left unregulated.

          To address these concerns, Jeff and Senator Cory Booker teamed up last month to introduce the Ethical Use of Facial Recognition Act. This legislation would require a halt of the government’s use of facial recognition technology until Congress receives specific recommendations from a new commission and passes regulations governing how facial recognition technology can be used going forward.

          Jeff believes that “Congress has an important responsibility to make sure that the government does not abuse emerging technology in ways that violate Americans’ right to privacy or that disproportionately and wrongfully single out Americans of color.” 

Taking Oregon’s “Bottle Bill” Success to the National Stage

          Oregonians’ commitment to enjoying and protecting our natural treasures -- from our grasslands to our forests and Pacific shores -- has long been woven into the spirit of our state. Out of that commitment and spirit have come a host of innovative and effective actions and programs to safeguard our environment from plastic pollution, including Oregon’s first-ever “bottle bill,” which created a bottle return refund system for all plastic and glass beverage containers in our communities. 

          Last month, Jeff proposed legislation in the U.S. Senate that would bring that successful program to the national stage, in order to encourage recycling and combat a growing plastic pollution crisis that not only threatens the health of our environment, but also the health of our communities. In fact, it is estimated that the average American ingests a credit card-size amount of plastic every week through their drinking water and their food. 

          “An America with the creativity to invent a million uses for plastic has the creativity to design better alternatives,” Jeff said. “Our kids’ health and futures depend on America solving this problem.”

          For more information about the bill and how it would work, click here. 

Thank you! 

Thank you for reading -- and don't forget, you can see the latest updates by liking Jeff on Facebook and following Jeff on Twitter. And be sure to check Merkley.senate.gov for more information on upcoming town halls and current events.