Congress

November 21, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Kay R. Hagan (D-NC) released the following statement this evening after the Senate cleared a key procedural hurdle that allowed debate to begin on the health care reform bill, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.    » read more »

November 19, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Kay R. Hagan (D-NC) today issued the following statement on the Senate health care reform bill, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) said the total cost of the bill will be $849 billion, and when all provisions are accounted for, the bill will reduce the federal deficit by $127 billion over the next 10 years. In the following decade, it will reduce the deficit by roughly $650 billion.

Senator Hagan said:    » read more »

Recent USDA Report Shows: Nearly 1 in 300 Samples of Ground Beef Contain E. coli

November 19, 2009 -- Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, the first New York senator to sit on the Senate Agriculture Committee in nearly 40 years, announced today the introduction of the E. coli Eradication Act - legislation she authored that would for the first time federally mandate testing of all ground beef for E. coli.    » read more »

November 18, 2009 -- Washington, D.C. - Earlier this week, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand gathered dozens of women leaders to protest Representative Bart Stupak's (D-MI) amendment. Doctors, businesswomen, teachers, public health experts, city, state, and federal elected officials and pro-choice leaders from NARAL, Planned Parenthood and others gathered to denounce the discriminatory and dangerous anti-choice provision, which would effectively prevent women from purchasing reproductive insurance with their own money and put the health of millions of women and young girls at grave risk.

After it was revealed that the Senate health care reform bill will not contain the dangerous and discriminatory Stupak measure, Senator Gillibrand released the following statement:    » read more »

Delivers Floor Speech in Favor of Health Care Benefits for Jobless WorkersWashington, D.C. -- Nov 19, 2009 – U.S. Senator Al Franken (D-Minn.) today spoke from the Senate floor in support of the COBRA Subsidy Extension and Enhancement Act, which would allow jobless workers to keep their health care while they sought new employment.

The text of his remarks follows:

Statement on the COBRA Subsidy Extension and Enhancement Act
Senator Al Franken    » read more »

Insurance Company Regulations Included in Merged Senate Bill

Washington, D.C. -- Nov 19, 2009 – U.S. Senators John Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) and Al Franken (D-Minn.) today praised the inclusion of a key cost-saving insurance company regulation that they fought to see included in the Senate health care reform bill.

The bill released last night contains provisions that require insurance companies to spend a set portion of their insurance premium dollars on actual health care services, as opposed to marketing campaigns, CEO salaries, and administrative costs. This portion of the dollar, known in the industry as “medical loss ratio,” has been set at 80 cents for group insurance plans and 75 cents for individual plans.    » read more »

Provisions Franken Fought for to Protect Minnesota Included

Washington, D.C. -- Nov 19, 2009 – Today, U.S. Senator Al Franken (D-Minn.) offered praise for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act introduced last night by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.). The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act contains several measures that Sen. Franken has been fighting for specifically, including two key cost-saving insurance regulations, an important reform of Medicare payment rates that would help Minnesota, and a reduced medical device tax rate.    » read more »

Franken an Original Co-Sponsor of Legislation Introduced by Sen. Dodd

Washington, D.C. -- Nov 18, 2009 – U.S. Senator Al Franken (D-Minn.) is an original co-sponsor of legislation authored by Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) to guarantee up to seven days of paid sick leave for workers infected by the H1N1 virus.

“Minnesota families need to know they can do what’s best to keep themselves and others healthy,” said Sen. Franken. “We know that staying home is the best way to combat the spread of the H1N1 virus. And in this tough economy, we know folks can’t get by without a paycheck. This legislation will make sure that Minnesotans can take care of themselves, or stay home to take care of their kids, without sacrificing their ability to make ends meet.”    » read more »

Television usage accounts for nearly 10 percent of household energy consumption

November 19, 2009 -- Washington, DC – U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) has issued a call for national energy efficiency standards for televisions, one day after the California Energy Commission (CEC) approved a measure that will require televisions to reduce current energy consumption by one-third by 2011 and by one-half by 2013.

Television usage accounts for nearly 10 percent of all household energy consumption.

Yesterday, Senator Feinstein sent a letter urging Dr. Steven Chu, Secretary of the Department of Energy, to follow California’s lead by setting a rigorous national efficiency standard.    » read more »

November 21, 2009 -- “Tonight’s vote allows the Senate to address the number one issue raised at my annual listening sessions – health care, particularly the skyrocketing cost and difficulty accessing health care.

The bill before the Senate is not perfect but it contains some good reforms, while expanding coverage to more than 30 million Americans who currently go without insurance.

I am pleased that the bill will decrease the deficit by $130 billion over the next ten years, and by another $650 billion in the ten years following that.    » read more »

November 20, 2009 -- “Once again, the FEC has proven itself to be a lawless agency, this time by creating an enormous loophole in Congress’s crackdown on corporate jets.

The corporate jet provision was a centerpiece of the 2007 Honest Leadership and Open Government Act, prohibiting senators from getting an enormous corporate subsidy by paying only first class airfare for a flight on a corporate jet.

The provision, which I championed with then-Senator Obama and Senator McCain, was approved overwhelmingly by Congress and no one had any doubt about what it meant.

By rewriting the law, the FEC has undermined Congress’ comprehensive response to lobbying abuses in the wake of the Abramoff scandal, which the American people so clearly called for.    » read more »

November 20, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) issued the following statement today following the Senate Ethics Committee’s finding regarding Senator Roland Burris:

“When we met with Roland Burris in January, we made it clear that in order for him to be seated in the U.S. Senate he needed to appear before the Illinois General Assembly to testify openly, honestly and completely about the nature of his relationship with the former governor, his associates and the circumstances surrounding this appointment.”    » read more »

November 21, 2009 -- (WASHINGTON, D.C.) – U.S. Senator Byron L. Dorgan (D-ND) released the following statement today on his vote to begin debating health care reform legislation in the Senate:

“I voted tonight in favor of the Motion to Proceed, which simply allows the Senate to begin debating and amending a proposed health care reform bill.

“I’ve made no decisions about the legislation itself because there will be many amendments to the plan offered by myself and other colleagues in the next several weeks that will change the legislation.    » read more »

Bill will help North Dakota's 57,000 veterans and their families

November 19, 2009 -- (WASHINGTON, D.C.) – The U.S. Senate has approved a bill co-sponsored by U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) that will improve health care benefits to American veterans and their families.

“We have 57,000 veterans in North Dakota who answered the call and served their country. We have an obligation to ensure they have access to quality care,” Dorgan said. “This is a bipartisan bill that will expand and improve veterans’ health care services, and I believe it will help our nation fulfill its obligation to the men and women who served in our armed services.”    » read more »

“The security of our economy is at stake. This is one of those moments in our nation’s history that compels us to be bold.”

November 19, 2009 -- This morning, Senate Banking Committee Chris Dodd (D-CT) delivered opening remarks as the Committee began debate on his Restoring American Financial Stability Act, a comprehensive bill to reform our financial system.

“The security of our economy is at stake. This is one of those moments in our nation’s history that compels us to be bold,” said Dodd.    » read more »