[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 81 (Thursday, May 12, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2467-S2468]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                              Coronavirus

  Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, 1 million deaths--unbelievable. But this 
week, it became very, very real. One million of our fellow Americans 
now have died from COVID, 1 million parents, grandparents, siblings, 
children, friends, neighbors. That is more Americans who lost their 
lives than the casualties in World War I, World War II, or the Civil 
War. That is the size of San Jose, CA, the 10th largest city in our 
Nation.
  But behind those 7 stark figures are real people, including more than 
33,600 in my home State of Illinois. One of those was a woman named 
Maria Elena Sifuentes. Maria lived in Chicago, where she worked at 
Communities United and organized for housing and education equity in 
her community. She had received her first COVID shot when she 
contracted the virus last summer. She passed away on June 10 at the age 
of 57 and left behind five children.
  We also grieve the loss of Sergeant Ken Thurman and Officer Brian 
Shields, two 51-year-old veteran police officers who worked in Aurora 
at the police department. They succumbed to COVID infections last year, 
both within the same week.
  When the pandemic first hit, this degree of loss was unimaginable. 
Some people dismissed COVID-19 and said that it was just like the 
ordinary flu

[[Page S2468]]

and that it would go away and mysteriously disappear. But now that we 
have crossed this tragic threshold, we must take stock of where we are 
and where we are headed.
  More than 2 years into this pandemic, COVID is still a threat to 
America and the world. In fact, infections nationwide are up 50 percent 
over the past 2 weeks. Hospitalizations are up 20 percent. That is the 
case in Illinois as well as our neighbors in the region. The 
Commonwealth of Kentucky, home of Minority Leader McConnell, had the 
highest COVID death rate in the country over the past week.

  The one thing worse than being swamped with another wave of COVID 
cases is being caught unprepared. Right now, we are sleepwalking into 
the next potentially deadly wave, and we know the virus will continue 
to mutate and pose threats. We need to learn from our 2 years of 
experience with Delta and Omicron and act now and be ready, be 
prepared.
  Over the weekend, the Biden administration warned that new 
subvariants could fuel a wave that is forecast to infect 100 million 
Americans--almost a third of our population--over this fall and winter. 
Yet last week, Health and Human Services Secretary Becerra testified to 
the Senate Appropriations Committee: ``[B]ut in order to be ready for 
that, we have to start purchasing today.'' That is what Secretary 
Becerra said. If we wait for the surge to hit, it is too late.
  Last week, it also was reported that the administration will run out 
of COVID vaccines by September 1 if the FDA authorizes second boosters 
for all adults. How can America be caught in this situation again--even 
with vaccines--unprepared?
  Because Federal funding has dried up to reimburse hospitals and 
health centers for testing, we don't have a complete picture of how 
many new infections are actually showing up. The University of 
Washington estimates the true number of infections is five times higher 
than official reports.
  So the alarm bells are ringing, and a looming vaccine crisis is right 
around the corner. Other countries in the world get it. They understand 
it. They are racing ahead of us to secure supplies of vaccines, but 
because of resistance from Republicans in Washington, we are not doing 
that.
  So why won't the Senate act to pass this COVID legislation--obviously 
necessary legislation--right now? It was more than a month ago that 
Senators Schumer and Romney, together with half-a-dozen bipartisan 
Senators, announced a $10 billion emergency COVID package. It is not 
everything we want; it is not everything we need; but it is an urgent 
measure that seeks to address the crisis.
  Instead of just getting this done, politics were inserted. There were 
demands for amendments or else. The process broke down. Instead of 
getting the job done, Republicans are playing politics. They are 
demanding poison pill riders on issues unrelated, like immigration.
  With summer approaching, Americans are eager to keep the face masks 
off for good and move past the pandemic. I get it. Everybody wants the 
kids back in school. They want them home for vacation. They want to 
take family vacations. They want to go out to dinner--all things that 
are part of the joy of life. I share the sentiment, but we have to deal 
with the reality of this virus. It is changing every day, and it has 
surprised us so many times before.
  Even the most persuasive political speech isn't going to change the 
course of this virus. Rather than reacting to whatever deadly curve 
ball gets thrown at us next, we must be ready beforehand with the right 
tools to keep us moving in the right direction. I don't want to come to 
the floor to mark 1\1/2\ million dead Americans or 2 million dead 
Americans due to the virus.
  The time to provide additional funding is not now; it was weeks ago. 
It is incredible to me that, after what this Nation has gone through--1 
million dead Americans--we are still debating over whether we should be 
prepared for the next stage of the virus. Shame on the politicians who 
are inserting politics into a life-and-death debate.
  Without this funding, we could very well lose the progress we have 
made in containing COVID. We cannot tolerate that sort of setback, 
especially at this pivotal moment where continued progress puts us on 
the cusp of what we dreamed of 2 years ago: finally putting an end to 
this pandemic, finally returning to normal.

  While Senate Democrats and the Biden administration have taken 
tremendous strides with getting shots in arms, supporting local 
businesses, and getting our kids back in school, we still have a lot to 
do.
  To my Republican colleagues: Drop the political antics. Join us in 
making this responsible investment to save lives and prevent the 
pandemic from once again spinning out of control. We know a new wave 
could be coming, and we need to sit down and face this public health 
issue for the reality that it is.
  Let's not waste time with irrelevant, anti-immigrant rhetoric. Let's 
do something that helps the American people and work together to drive 
America's recovery forward.