[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 47 (Wednesday, March 11, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1685-S1687]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CORONAVIRUS
Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, over the last several weeks, the world has
watched closely as the coronavirus has spread from China to more than
100 countries around the world.
Since this rapid spread began--before cases were discovered in at
least 35 States, including the District of Columbia--folks in my
hometown of San Antonio were already providing topnotch care for
Americans evacuated from Wuhan Province overseas with suspected
exposure.
From the first evacuees from China to more than 120 passengers from
the Diamond Princess cruise ship, to those who will soon arrive from
the Grand Princess cruise ship, the dedicated healthcare professionals
in San Antonio have been operating--have been hitting on all cylinders.
So far, Lackland Air Force Base has been used to quarantine 235
evacuees, with hundreds more to arrive in the coming days. I must say,
they have done a good job of managing this rapidly evolving situation,
but that is not to say there haven't been challenges.
A few weeks ago, I organized a meeting with officials from the city
of San Antonio, including the mayor and two city council persons, as
well as the Department of Health and Human Services and the Defense
Department, to discuss the ongoing mission and any concerns the city
might have. Anytime officials at every level of government
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are working together--whether it is in response to a natural disaster
or a public health emergency--coordination is key. You have to make
sure everybody is operating on the same page and regularly sharing
information--something that was a challenge in the beginning and
remains a challenge today.
At one point, we were able to get everybody in the same room to
discuss not only the response to the virus but the steps to be taken to
protect the general public in the surrounding area. Of course, that
work doesn't start and end at Lackland in San Antonio. Hospitals around
the State are facing a great deal of pressure and uncertainty
surrounding the virus and working to ensure that they are prepared to
treat potential coronavirus patients without impacting their normal
operations is an urgent concern.
Last week, I helped organize a conference call with the Texas
Hospital Association and officials from Health and Human Services and
the Texas Department of State Health Services to discuss some of the
issues of concern to hospitals serving on the frontline all across our
State. There have been a lot of news stories about the shortage of
masks and personal protective equipment for healthcare workers and
subsequent price gouging, and that is a big concern for these
hospitals--many of which serve rural populations. As I told folks on
that call, communication in these situations is critical. It seems so
obvious, but it is not done unless you insist upon it. I was
particularly glad to hear personally their concerns so we can make sure
we are doing what is needed on our end in Washington, DC, to support
them.
I appreciate Texas's incredible healthcare professionals who have
been working to treat patients in their care and prevent the
coronavirus from spreading to the general public. The city of San
Antonio--I have to single out in particular--has been carrying the
weight of the struggle for a number of weeks now, and it has come at
quite a significant cost to city taxpayers. Fortunately, last week, the
President signed an $8.3 billion funding bill to support our Nation's
response to the coronavirus. It will send vital funding for treating
and preventing the spread of the virus, including the purchase of masks
and personal protective equipment, as well as supporting the
development of a vaccine.
The funding bill will also include money for State and local
communities, including San Antonio, which have been at the forefront of
the battle at home. That makes $950 million available for reimbursement
for the costs Texas and other States have incurred while monitoring and
treating these individuals. It is a start in the process to repay San
Antonio for the work they have done to help our Nation mitigate the
impact of the coronavirus.
I appreciate Chairman Shelby and Ranking Member Leahy for including
this reimbursement funding in the legislation and working so closely
with all of us to get the relief on the way as soon as possible.
Over the last couple of days, we have witnessed the ripple effect the
coronavirus threat has had on the markets, and the next big question on
everyone's mind is how this virus will impact the economy. Yesterday we
had the opportunity to discuss potential options with President Trump,
Vice President Pence, and Secretary Mnuchin, and we are continuing to
work to identify the best path forward.
Unfortunately, there doesn't yet seem to be a bipartisan effort to
try to reach a consensus--something we need. One of our Democratic
colleagues suggested that the best way to prevent economic damage is to
stop the spread of the virus. I can't argue with that logic, but unless
that Senator knows something the rest of us don't know, that is not
exactly a productive use of our time. We know we need to stop the
virus, but we also need to deal with the economic fallout as well.
When we were in a position in 2014 with the Ebola crisis, we didn't
hear a lot of griping about what President Obama was doing. We found
ways to work with him for the betterment of our communities in the
country. So I hope that at a time when we are confronting this threat,
we can work together. That includes the Speaker and the minority leader
here, all of us together to try to solve this problem. It is not a time
to play politics. It is a time for us to work together in the Nation's
interest.
Keeping the American people safe and healthy and keeping our economy
strong should be a shared bipartisan goal. I hope our colleagues--all
of our colleagues--will keep that in mind, just as we did when we
worked with President Obama in 2014.
While the American people are rightly taking precautions to protect
themselves and their loved ones, it is important to remember there is
no reason to panic. Preparation, yes; panic, no.
The leaders at the Centers for Disease Control and the Department of
Health and Human Services continue to remind all of us that the risk
for the average American remains low, and the best defense against the
virus is to use the same personal hygiene practices that our mother
taught us when we were young. To help communicate what those practices
are, as well as other information, my office has created a unique web
page on my official website, cornyn.senate.gov. This will serve as a
platform to provide information to all Texans who have questions about
the virus and may be of interest to anybody who is concerned about what
the government is doing to deal with the virus. If you are looking for
information on how to prevent the spread of the virus, what Congress is
doing to help, where you can find the latest number of cases in Texas,
we have compiled all of the relevant links in one place.
I know I speak on behalf of all Texans when I thank the dedicated
healthcare professionals around the State and around the Nation for
providing the highest quality care for people who come down with the
virus. I am grateful for everyone who is unified in this fight and who
are working to stop the spread of the virus and, ultimately, develop a
vaccine.
On one final note, let me say a word about my friend and colleague
Senator Cruz. Over the weekend, he announced he would self-quarantine
after coming into contact with someone who was later determined to have
the coronavirus. I want to thank him for having the courage to step
forward and to do what any one of us should do if we are exposed to
somebody with the coronavirus, if we know it: to monitor our health and
make sure we don't spread it to others and to seek care from a
healthcare professional should we begin to come down with worrisome
symptoms.
His is a great reminder for all Americans to take this potential risk
seriously and that we should all be joined together to do everything we
can to keep our communities safe and healthy.
I yield the floor.
I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. BROWN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for
the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The Senator from Ohio.
Mr. BROWN. Mr. President, I appreciate the comments of my friend from
Texas. I only heard part of them, but I appreciate his interest and
what we need to do to deal with this coronavirus. I hear so often in
this body that it is about the economic issues, which to be sure it is,
as you know in Utah and Senator Cornyn knows. But when I hear the
President's response on what to do--first, I know that people are angry
in Ohio and I think elsewhere that the President has waited so long to
act.
I know people are angry when they find out that the President made
major cuts to the Centers for Disease Control, which the Presiding
Officer knows is the best public health agency probably in the history
of the world, combined with our public health departments at NIH and
the FDA and National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health in
Cincinnati--all of this incredible public health infrastructure safety
net we have built in this country bipartisanly through decades and
decades and decades.
I know people are unhappy when they learn about the President
eliminating the position at the White House of the admiral physician
who ran our effort to always be trying to anticipate a public health
outbreak, a pandemic of sorts. I
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don't know whether or not we are in one. I don't think we know that.
I am not an alarmist or panicky in any way, but I know people realize
we had such a late start on this because of the President's actions
over the last 3 years.
The issue is not to bail out more corporations. The issue is not to
give money to the cruise ship companies, for gosh sakes, which is one
part of the President's rhetoric tweet proposals. The cruise ship
industry is almost exclusively foreign-owned. Why take tax dollars and
shovel them into the cruise industry?
Instead of focusing on large corporations, which is something the
President always does--I understand that is what he comes from, who he
is, and who his supporters are--instead of focusing there, we should be
focusing on individuals, and that means starting with a sick leave
policy and sick days.
Think about how hard it is for all of us in this body--think about
somebody making $12 an hour and living alone or living with a child or
living with a spouse, whoever, making $12 an hour with no benefits and
they get sick. They think, let's see, do I go to work--if I go to work
sick, I may get worse, and I may infect my colleagues and other
employees--or do I stay home and give up that $100 of a $12-an-hour
job? I am paying $700 a month in rent. Can I give up that $100 or $200
or $300 over 2 or 3 days?
There are so many Americans who are sick who wrestle with that
decision every single day. This is an opportunity. Senator Murray
worked on a bill. I worked on this bill with her for a good while. I
just spoke with Congresswoman DeLauro from Connecticut about working on
legislation to provide emergency relief right now. We can do this
today. I know the Presiding Officer has been open-minded about things
like this. We can make this bipartisan. We can have immediate 14-day
help as part of our package that we already voted on and then have a
long-term, 7-day sick day policy where you earn those benefits. As you
work, you earn that--up to 7-day sick day policy. Every other
industrialized, wealthy country in the world has it. It makes safer,
healthier workplaces and safer, healthier workers. It will mean good
help and stronger families--all the kinds of things a sick day policy
would mean to our country.
I am hopeful that rather than shovel money to corporations, we will
spend that money on individuals, on people, on workers and their
workplace. It could make all the difference in the world, not just in
addressing this coronavirus public health crisis today but in
preventing these kinds of crises in the future.
I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order
for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent for me, Senator
Collins, and Senator Cassidy to have a colloquy.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
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