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Dear John,
As our nation navigates this global pandemic, we will overcome this as Nebraskans and Americans. This week, I have met with local and federal leaders to discuss how we can combat the coronavirus.
Congressman Neal Dunn from Florida, and member of the Veterans Affairs Committee, joined me at the Omaha VA Medical Center last Monday where we met with Director Don Burman and his staff and toured the new Ambulatory Care Center. Omaha’s new ACC is the first of its kind built through a private, public partnership, and is the first of five authorized by Congress to test the growth and modernization of future VHA centers. We also participated in a roundtable with Veteran Service Organizations to discuss the VA's response to the coronavirus and the services they offer to veterans.
On Wednesday, I visited UNMC’s biocontainment unit and joined in on a conference briefing with DHHS Deputy Secretary Eric Hargan, UNMC Chancellor Dr. Jeff Gold and Lt Governor Foley to discuss UNMC’s medical surge capacity. We learned about the proactive measures they are taking to reduce the spread of the coronavirus so that our medical system can provide care for all. Secretary Hargan said that Nebraska stands out for how we are working together to respond to the coronavirus. Read the story here.
My staff and I hosted a tele-town hall last Thursday with local health professionals: Dr. Gary J Anthone, MD, DHHS Division of Public Health, Dr. Adi M Pour, Ph.D., Health Director of the Douglas County Community Health Department, Sarah Schram, Sarpy County Health Department Health Director, Leon Milobar, State Director for the Small Business Association, and Shelly Schwedhelm from Nebraska Medicine. We had over 4,000 constituents call in. You can listen to it here.
We discussed the government’s response to the coronavirus as well as pushing state and local efforts. We answered questions from constituents on how the coronavirus is impacting schools, small businesses, student loans, and taxes. This was a great way for Nebraska’s Second District to hear from local health officials and hopefully ease some of their concerns.
At each of these events, the healthcare professionals all stressed the same thing: practicing good hygiene habits, stay home, and utilize social distancing. These three tools are the front-line attack in battling this virus.
All levels of government, whether that is at the local, state, or national level, are working hard to protect and serve every American. I will continue to work with our ten mayors, Governor Ricketts, the Nebraska delegation, and the White House to push for more protections and resources for all Nebraskans and Americans.
The rest of the battle is being fought by our healthcare professionals. We’re spending funds to speed up testing kit production, so they have them. An estimated four million kits will be created per week, but various states are investing in this capability, so that number is expected to go up. We’re going to work hard to get them here in the heartland.
Last week, I voted for the Family First Coronavirus Response bill. This second round of supplemental spending will provide free testing for Americans so we can more quickly determine who needs care and target our resources. It also strengthens our safety net to help those who temporarily lose employment. I'm grateful Congress worked hard to negotiate and modify this bill to gain overwhelming bipartisan support.
As many businesses are taking an economic hit, it is important that Congress take a good look at phase three of the supplemental bills, which is aimed directly at small businesses and, I urge, also non-profits. Whether we implement more relief programs, disaster loans, or simply cover certain expenses, our businesses are also sacrificing, and we need to ensure they can re-open and retain their employees.
In addition, I’ve focused on removing barriers that are impeding mass production of respirators and masks. Our medical teams and emergency responders need them, and the demand is high. In years past, the manufactures of these respirators were given liability protections similar to what is given to other medical equipment in time of emergencies, but those protections expired.
Paul Tonko (NY-20) and Jim Langevin (RI-02) and I introduced H.R. 4982, the Health Care Workforce Protection Act of 2019 last November. Portions of it are included in the second emergency supplemental bill and all of the language is included in the third emergency stimulus bill from the Senate: the ‘Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act’’ or the ‘‘CARES Act.” Senator Deb Fischer (NE) introduced similar legislation last month.
We are committed to keeping you informed every step of the way by providing a wide variety of federal resources. For more information, please visit my website at bacon.house.gov
Today I am calling civic, business, and nonprofit leaders all over the district. It is my utmost goal for our community to “snap-back” into business and full employment after this medical emergency passes.
Our country is the strongest in the world. We have the best research and innovation, and we will overcome and tackle this threat together. I learned from my five commands and three decades in the Air Force that unified teams overcome and rise above. We are in unprecedented times, but we will fight together as a county and become stronger than ever.
As always, you can visit my website to get up to date information about the coronavirus and resources. https://bacon.house.gov/services/coronavirus-information.htm
Sincerely,
Don Bacon, Member of Congress
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