Pandemic Help and Testing for Children and Their Families

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Ms. SCHRIER. Madam Speaker, I am so proud of the wins in the American Rescue Plan, and in particular with what this means for America's children. As a pediatrician, my life's work has been the health and the wellbeing of children.

This pandemic has been particularly hard for children and families. The most important thing we can do to bring relief to our communities is to end the pandemic. This means getting shots into as many arms as possible as quickly as we can. It also means taking steps now to ensure that when children return to the classroom, our schools and our small businesses can stay safe and stay open.

Testing is key to keeping our schools and workplaces safe. And, frankly, we have not used testing in a way that significantly curbs the spread of this disease. Rapid home testing, in particular, is a critical public health tool that we have yet to really deploy. And there is funding in the American rescue package to support more strategic widespread testing.

Rapid tests can give results in about 15 minutes, and they can be done at home. Imagine testing in the morning before brushing your teeth. By the time you are done with breakfast you would have a result. If positive, you would stay home and avoid spreading coronavirus to others. This is how we break the chain of transmission and starve the virus. What we need now is to get these tests evaluated, approved, scaled up and priced such that everyone can use them two to three times a week. Frequent testing means you will catch infections early while people are still asymptomatic and would otherwise unknowingly be spreading them to others.

The technology is inexpensive and is similar to that used in pregnancy tests. In fact, these tests can be produced in bulk for a dollar or two per test. But we need investment from the Federal Government in doing head-to-head comparisons to determine which tests are the best, and then production and procurement of those best tests on a massive scale.

This is a new virus. Variants have already emerged that make it more contagious. More are sure to come. It will be close to a year before all of our children are vaccinated. Now, frequent rapid testing is a way to identify infected children and staff before they get symptoms and keep them at home so they can't infect others. It can give staff and families confidence that our schools are safe. It can also give an early warning of outbreaks. Now, imagine what this sort of testing could mean for workplaces, for restaurants, and for theaters.

The American Rescue Plan does more than strengthen our vaccines and testing though. It provides critical relief that families need right now.

We are in one of the worst economic downturns this country has ever seen, and the American Rescue Plan provides help where it is most needed, prioritizing children and families.

This plan shores up the child tax credit and provides it up front as a monthly check for up to $300 per child. This is a very big deal. More than 93 percent of children and families will benefit, including the poorest 10 percent, who currently get no benefits because their parents' income is too low to qualify. These are the families who need the help the most. This provision alone will cut the number of children living in poverty in half.

It also shores up SNAP benefits and incorporates my bill to expand WIC, so that children can get good nutrition and enough of it to power their brains and their bodies. It provides cash benefits and enhanced unemployment benefits that will help the hardest-hit families the most, and it gets even more help to families with children.

It expands Medicaid in States that haven't already and makes it easier for people to afford and sign up for health insurance.

And finally, it provides resources to schools so that educators, staff, children, and their families feel confident that they are returning to classrooms safely. And it expands broadband access at home to narrow the digital divide.

The American Rescue Plan is a win for the country. It meets the moment, and it focuses relief on the people and businesses hardest hit by the economic and social fallout from this pandemic. Important to this pediatrician, it helps families and children with bold policy changes we have always needed but that have become even more urgent during this crisis.

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