Representative Adriano Espaillat Leads Delegation Call for Additional COVID-19 Funding for New York.
Members Seek to Stop Spread of Variants, Provide Health Care to All New Yorkers. WASHINGTON, DC -- Today, Representative Adriano Espaillat (NY-13) led his New York colleagues in letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell urging additional funding to be included in the imminent COVID-19 supplemental for New Yorkers.
“Our state has persevered through the burden of being the epicenter throughout each variant and flare-up of the pandemic. We are determined to continue to build upon the progress that has been made to eradicate the virus and establish our new normal,” the lawmakers wrote. “Additional federal resources for HRSA and CDC are critical to maintaining our swift response to COVID-19.”
“As the latest subvariant, B.A.2, begins to rise, we ask for sufficient federal support to continue to respond to the challenges of the pandemic,” they continued. “Despite the volume of need in New York, the state has developed the strongest testing infrastructure in the United States. Without proper funding, this will change.”
“The COVID-19 Supplemental Resources must include the maximum funding possible for the Centers for Disease Control and Protection (CDC)…[as well as] robust funding in the Supplemental for the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), which reimburse medical providers for serving uninsured patients,” they concluded. “As our country finally begins to enjoy life similar to the pre-COVID days, it is more important than ever that we do not let our guard down and allow the virus to ravage our communities.”
In addition to Rep. Espaillat, this letter was signed by Representatives Brian Higgins (NY-26), Nydia M. Velázquez (NY-07), Jerrold Nadler (NY-10), Jamaal Bowman Ed.D. (NY-16), Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09), Carolyn B. Maloney (NY-12), Joseph D. Morelle (NY-25), Paul D. Tonko (NY-20), Thomas R. Suozzi (NY-03), Mondaire Jones (NY-17), and Grace Meng (NY-06).
You can read the full text of the letter below:
Dear Majority Leader Schumer, Minority Leader McConnell, Speaker Pelosi and Minority Leader McCarthy:
We, the New York State Congressional Delegation, write to you today to express our strong support for robust funding for the Centers and Disease Control (CDC) and the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) in the imminent COVID-19 supplemental. Our state has persevered through the burden of being the epicenter throughout each variant and flare-up of the pandemic. We are determined to continue to build upon the progress that has been made to eradicate the virus and establish our new normal. Additional federal resources for HRSA and CDC are critical to maintaining our swift response to COVID-19.
At the height of the Omicron surge, New York reached a record of greater than 90,000 cases per day. This was even higher than the rampant spread beginning in March 2020 that originally shuttered our businesses, forced children out of schools, and overloaded our hard-working medical professionals and healthcare systems. The difference was that the state was prepared with the testing kits, vaccine doses, and treatment options needed to recover rapidly. As the latest subvariant, B.A.2, begins to rise, we ask for sufficient federal support to continue to respond to the challenges of the pandemic. Despite the volume of need in New York, the state has developed the strongest testing infrastructure in the United States. Without proper funding, this will change. A major preventer of severe illness thus far has been the drug Paxlovid. One hospitalization is prevented for every twenty patients treated with Paxlovid, but to know who needs treatment, we need to sustain testing access.
Additionally, the COVID-19 Supplemental Resources must include the maximum funding possible for the Centers for Disease Control and Protection (CDC). We have consistently relied on the data and recommendations provided by the CDC to protect our community and safely reopen. The critical research conducted by the CDC must continue at its full capacity.
Finally, please include robust funding in the Supplemental for the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), which reimburse medical providers for serving uninsured patients. To maintain a healthy community and stop the spread of the virus, we must continue to provide health care to all New Yorkers, regardless of socioeconomic level. Failing to do so will discourage many from seeking testing and potentially severely strain our public infrastructure.
As our country finally begins to enjoy life similar to the pre-COVID days, it is more important than ever that we do not let our guard down and allow the virus to ravage our communities. In the wake of the past two years, we must apply the lessons we have learned to improve public health and prevent any more tragedy. Again, thank you for your consideration, and we look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Representative Espaillat is the first Dominican American to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives and his congressional district includes Harlem, East Harlem, West Harlem, Hamilton Heights, Washington Heights, Inwood, Marble Hill and the north-west Bronx. First elected to Congress in 2016, Representative Espaillat is serving his third term in Congress. Representative Espaillat currently serves as a member of the influential U.S. House Committee on Appropriations responsible for funding the federal government’s vital activities. He is also a member of the House Committee on Education and Labor and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC), where he serves in a leadership role as the Second Vice Chair and is a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, where he serves as Deputy Whip. Representative Espaillat also currently serves as a Senior Whip of the Democratic Caucus. To find out more about Rep. Espaillat, visit online at https://espaillat.house.gov/. |
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