CNN "CNN Newsroom" - Transcript: Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) is Interviewed about the Stimulus Bill in Congress

Interview

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

HARLOW: So right now Senate Republicans are trying to reach a deal on a huge what would be a $1 trillion stimulus package to ease the economic fallout of the coronavirus. It would be the third and largest yet stimulus plan from Congress amid -- in just the past few weeks amid this crisis.

Republican Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana joins me now.

And, notably, and importantly, you're also a physician. Sir, thank you for being with me.

SEN. BILL CASSIDY (R-LA): Thank you, Poppy.

HARLOW: Let's get to the stimulus package in a moment. But I'd like to talk about what you're pushing for with your lens, not only as a lawmaker, but as a physician, and that is a bill, you have bipartisan support from some Democrats in the Senate as well, to ensure that any private health insurer in this country would have to totally cover the costs of vaccines and treatments for coronavirus once we have them.

Are -- do you have support from enough across the aisle on this, on both sides, and do you have the support of the White House?

[09:40:06]

CASSIDY: Absolutely it's bipartisan. Absolutely vaccine will be made available. It may be available made -- it may be made available through other means, but if not through other means, it will be made -- it will be made available through this.

Under current law, if the United States Public Health Task Force says that a vaccine is approved, it must be covered. And so we want to make sure that a Covid-19 vaccine would be covered under that.

Now, it's also possible, under legislation Congress has previously passed, which set up vaccine manufacturing units in which the taxpayer owns 75 percent, that the federal government would just take that vaccine produced and distribute directly.

When I was a child, I remember going to my elementary school and taking a polio vaccine. All everybody was lined up and everybody took their polio vaccine, paid for by the government.

HARLOW: But --

CASSIDY: That may be another mechanism. We're going to make sure this happens.

HARLOW: As I understand it, though, your legislation wouldn't just be about a vaccine, it would be about fully covering treatment, is that the case?

CASSIDY: Yes, so we also want to make sure that folks have the therapy that they need. We're also concerned about the high cost of any drug which may be shown to be effective.

HARLOW: Right.

CASSIDY: If it's an oral drug, for example, I want to make sure the Medicare Part D Beneficiary

has access to it. That would be through a different bill we're putting forward. But whatever legislation we can put forward to make sure the American people's health is taken care of, we're going to put it forward.

HARLOW: That's right, because I believe under Medicare Part D you're still responsible for at least 5 percent of the cost there. So if they're overwhelmingly expensive --

CASSIDY: Oh, Poppy, you're good. You're good. Because above a certain level, the Medicare Part D Beneficiary is responsible for 5 percent of list price.

HARLOW: Right. Right.

CASSIDY: Not the rebated price, but list --

HARLOW: The list.

CASSIDY: We're trying to change that to cap what the out of pocket is and then to allow the senior to pay it over 12 months as opposed to having to pay it in January and February.

HARLOW: Understood.

Let's move on to the stimulus.

So a trillion dollar stimulus. This would include a few things, cash payments to Americans, about half of it, but also about half of it going towards small businesses that are reeling right now that cannot keep their doors open and some for other affected sectors. Is it -- is it enough because the projections I just heard from Kevin Hassett, who was the president's top economist, is that this isn't -- this isn't nearly enough. Is this just one of what is to come, a lot more?

CASSIDY: This is phase three. There will be a phase four.

HARLOW: OK.

CASSIDY: I'm pushing for a massive infrastructure package. We can borrow money at record low rates. Let's put working Americans that work in construction, which begins to drive demand for manufactured goods, which then drives demand for service goods.

And, by the way, when you do construction, you can socially distance. When you manufacture, you can set it up so that you socially distance. And so I think that would be an engine, if you will, to pull everybody forward but, by the way, making investments that benefit our GDP in the long-term.

HARLOW: That's an interesting point. In terms of cash assistance going to businesses, you know there's been some pushback on potential bailouts of larger industries that have paid out in recent months big dividends, for example. There's also a concern about, you know, big companies and assistance if they get it. Elizabeth Warren I thought, has an interesting proposal, and I wonder

what you think your fellow senator on the other side of the aisle who has a list of things she's calling for should this happen, including a $15 minimum wage guarantee, a permanent ban on share buybacks, no dividends or executive bonuses while receiving relief. Are those good ideas?

CASSIDY: I would have to look at those. But it's hard to think that if executive bonus is set upon profitability that anybody is getting an executive bonus. I mean right now companies are just trying to keep from bankruptcy. I'm actually --

HARLOW: But perhaps even more importantly wages. That's certainly what stood out to me in terms of $15 minimum at least.

CASSIDY: You know, right now, small businesses don't even know if they're going to keep people employed.

HARLOW: Yes.

CASSIDY: If you're going to put a $15 benefit upon somebody, there are restaurants that have already closed in New York City because of their $15 minimum wage. When I speak to small businesses back home, their decision isn't whether to pay $15 or not, their decision is whether to continue to employ people.

HARLOW: Yes.

CASSIDY: I think that it sounds very nice as populism. I think it is very insensitive to the employers who are trying to keep the door open.

HARLOW: I believe, and I could be wrong, I'll double-check, but this is geared towards the bigger employers. But -- but I hear you.

But before -- before you go, talk about your position as a physician when you hear something like this from your fellow Republican in the Senate, Ron Johnson, who told "The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel" yesterday, quote, I'm not denying what a nasty disease Covid-19 can be, and how it's obviously devastating somewhere between 1 to 3.4 percent of the population. But that means 97 to 99 percent will get through this and develop immunities and will be able to move beyond this. We don't shut down our economy because tens of thousands of people die on the highways. It's a risk we accept so we can move on. We don't shut down our economies because tens of thousands of people die from the common flu.

[09:45:03]

Does it worry you to hear that, the comparison to the flu?

CASSIDY: So, clearly, there has to be a sensitivity to the economy. We have to take care of people's financial health and their physical health. Perhaps as a physician, I can -- I've been reading the medical literature. Every night before I go to bed, I just read "The New England Journal of Medicine" Lancet (ph) and Jama (ph) and other articles. And when conservative projections are that as many as 500,000 Americans will die and more expansive even more, of course you understand that impacts the economy otherwise. If a 40-year-old physician suddenly becomes ill, then her kids are not taken care of, then suddenly you understand the impact it has upon the economy. So I see that in the relationship between the two. I totally get we've got to take care of people's jobs, hence these packages, but I think that we have to have the credible plan to limit the spread of this disease.

HARLOW: Fair enough. Health first.

Senator Cassidy, that message is pretty clear. Thanks for your time. Good luck.

CASSIDY: Thank you.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source