Catching Up With Crenshaw

Congressman Crenshaw here,

This week, I continued to push for reopening schools in the fall so we can reduce the harm done to our kids from extended closures. I also highlighted my bill to incentivize Americans to return to work and spoke with Dr. Shah of Harris County Health about the holistic approach we must take when considering the public health impacts of COVID-19.

Please reach out to my offices if you have a concern, want to hear what we’re working on in Congress, or are having trouble with a federal agency. I have a full team in Texas and in the nation's capital ready to assist you. Be sure to stay up to date by following me on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube. For a behind-the-scenes look, follow my staff's official Instagram account.

Now, let's catch up.

We must do everything in our power to reopen our schools

We need to do everything in our power to safely reopen schools in the fall. The American Academy of Pediatrics agrees. They issued a report recently, stating that "the AAP strongly advocates that all policy considerations for the coming school year should start with a goal of having students physically present in school."

Kids and parents have suffered the most under extended school closures. We cannot ignore the severe health, social, and educational risks of keeping kids out of school, which is why I'm continuing to advocate for a strategy to return kids safely to school in the fall.

Click here or on the image above to watch.

we need to incentivize americans to return to work

I've spoken to small businesses across our district and they all express the same concern: they are struggling to get their employees in the door. That's because we are giving Americans a financial incentive to stay at home by paying them more on unemployment than they would receive by returning to work. So how do we fix that?

I have introduced a plan that would allow Americans to keep the extra unemployment bonus if they return to their job. This ensures that Americans are not taking a financial hit for getting back to work and reviving our economy. Click here to read more about my plan.

Click here or on the image to watch.

how can we take a holistic approach to public health?

Too many politicians are considering the public health impacts of COVID-19 with an extremely narrow view, ignoring the economic, educational, and other public health effects of extended lockdowns.

I spoke to Dr. Umair Shah of Harris County Public Health about this exact issue during a Congressional committee hearing this week. As Dr. Shah said, "it’s not just the health and medical impacts from COVID. It’s this real socioeconomic, sociodemographic impact across the communities.”‬

I fully agree. It's why I continue to push back strongly against total lockdowns, because lockdowns have serious public health impacts on people who have lost their jobs, on students who aren't returning to school, and on people who aren't receiving the medical procedures they need to stay healthy.

Click here or on the image above to watch.