Middle Class Health Benefits Tax Repeal Act of 2019

Floor Speech

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Mr. COURTNEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the third COVID-19 relief package--the CARES Act. House and Senate leadership has worked tirelessly around-the-clock to find middle ground to deliver tangible relief to communities around the country reeling from the impacts of COVID-19.

The final bipartisan compromise that was negotiated over the last few days included some meaningful changes with input from the House of Representatives, including major additional investments in the health care sector that was missing from the original bill. These investments include an additional $100 billion for hospitals and health care providers, $16 billion for the production and purchase of personal protective equipment (PPE) and ventilators, and $11 billion to fund critical, lifesaving medical research so that we may better understand this virus and someday soon, have a vaccine to stop it.

While our state and local governments are making heroic efforts to combat COVID-19, there is no doubt they need additional support. The revised CARES Act does just that--providing over one billion dollars at a minimum to every state in the nation to fight this, including $1.38 billion for Connecticut. This funding will be critical to make sure we can get the job done.

Mr. Speaker, while there is more work to be done to support our constituents through this crisis, the CARES Act is a much-needed step in the right direction, and I urge its immediate passage.

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