Hi there, I wanted to give you a quick update on the work I am doing in the Senate to help Minnesotans during this unprecedented crisis.

As you may already know, the Senate passed a bipartisan coronavirus bill last night — offering some much-needed relief to American families, small businesses, hospitals, and local and state governments.

Some of the highlights of the bill include:

• Unemployment benefits will be extended and expanded to help more workers
• Forgivable loans will be available to support small businesses and nonprofits
• Hospitals will get a significant increase in funding to support their services
• Providers will receive increased Medicare payments to get critical funding
• New investments will be made in COVID-19 research and in medical supplies
• There will be worker and transparency protections on government loans

During these negotiations, I fought tirelessly to ensure families, small businesses, and our health care workers were getting the resources they needed.

I championed portions of the legislation that would ensure private insurance plans cover a COVID-19 vaccine without cost-sharing when it becomes available.

I fought hard to put in place measures that would prevent drug shortages and protect our medical supply chain.

I helped secure $3.5 billion in additional funding for child care assistance for frontline workers and made sure we are supporting our rural and telehealth programs.

And I fought to secure more than $8 billion in critical funding for tribes and the Indian Health Service.

But this is just the first step.

As this public health and economic crisis deepens, I will continue to be a resource for all Minnesotans and fight for the needs of our communities.

I will do everything in my power to work with state and local officials to ensure our families, hospitals, local governments, businesses, and community programs get the support they have been promised.

I know the hard work is just getting started, and I am rolling up my sleeves to fiercely advocate on behalf of everyone.

Trust me — I am not done fighting for you. I hope you and your loved ones are staying healthy and safe.

— Tina

P.S. I know this is an unprecedented time for many families, but if you have any change to spare, I hope you will consider pitching in to Meals on Wheels — an organization working on the frontlines of this pandemic. Please, only give if you can afford to do so.