Latest Releases
Sen. Smith joins Dem Women’s Caucus, House and Senate Democrats, in Demanding Health Insurers Fully Cover Birth Control, As Required by the ACA
Washington, DC — Today, Senator Tina Smith (D-MN), along with Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), and Democratic Women’s Caucus (DWC) Chair Lois Frankel (FL-22), Reps. Ayanna Pressley (MA-7), Kathy Manning (NC-6), and Judy Chu (CA-28), led over 150 House and Senate Democratic colleagues in urging health insurers to fully comply with the Affordable Care Act (ACA) contraception coverage requirement. Specifically, the members urged insurers to adopt a “therapeutic equivalence standard” ensuring coverage—without cost sharing—of every FDA-approved birth control product that does not have a therapeutic equivalent (generic). The letter comes after years of systemic noncompliance by insurance plans, forcing women to pay out of pocket or face administrative red tape to access the birth control that works best for them. “We write to express our concerns that your members are not complying with the Affordable Care Act contraception coverage requirement, and to urge them to consider immediate adoption of the therapeutic equivalence standard outlined by the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and Treasury on January 22, 2024,” wrote the lawmakers in a letter toAmerica’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP)—whose membership includes major health insurers across the country—and UnitedHealth Group. Despite the ACA’s protections, the members outlined how multiple investigations—including by the House Oversight Committee, “have revealed that plans routinely violate the ACA by refusing to cover certain products, imposing administrative hurdles like prior authorizations and step therapy (fail first protocols), and requiring patient cost-sharing.” In response to these violations, the Biden Administration recently released additional guidance, outlining a standard that requires coverage
U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar, Tina Smith Announce New Childcare Facility in Luverne
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN), a member of the Senate Education Committee, announced federal funding they secured last year to renovate a vacant facility in Luverne, Minnesota into a childcare center has been disbursed. The project will help the city purchase and renovate a facility into a new center that will accommodate 186 infants, toddlers, preschool, and school-age children. The renovated space will also accommodate staff and administrative spaces, a gymnasium, and food preparation kitchen. “Too often I have heard that parents around the state, including in Rock County, have difficulty finding safe, reliable, and affordable child care in their communities,” said Senator Klobuchar. “We worked to secure a federal grant for Luverne to open a new child care center to serve hundreds of kids and expand options for parents.” “With few options for childcare in this area, working families are put in a serious bind. How can parents work without a safe, affordable place for their kids to go while they are at work?” said Senator Smith. “Luverne is leading the way in creating a community young families will want to live in, and this new facility is a testament to their hard work.” Rock County has over 350 kids below the age of five who need childcare, but capacity for just 240 of them, according to First Children’s Finance. Over the last ten years, almost half of the nearly 60 home child care providers in Rock County have left the field or retired. For some families, it makes more financial sense stay home rather
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Leads Bipartisan Senate Push to Support Minnesota Pork Producers Hit Hard By Meat Processing Plant, Restaurant Closures
WASHINGTON, D.C. [05/11/20]—U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) is leading a bipartisan Senate push to help pork producers in Minnesota and across the country after the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic shut down meat processing plants and restaurants and dried up billions of dollars in demand for their products. In a letter Monday to House and Senate leaders led by Sen. Smith and Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), the 14 Senators said the pandemic has idled 40% of meat processing capacity and thrown producers into a crisis requiring them to quickly euthanize hundreds of thousands of animals. “The crisis is immediate. Pork producers send to market over two million pigs each week. If twenty percent of
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Continues Fight to Make Sure Families with Children Receive COVID-19 Relief Payments
WASHINGTON, D.C. [05/12/20]—U.S. Senator Tina (D-Minn.) is continuing the fight to ensure families get the full direct payments they qualify for under the CARES Act by calling on Department of the Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to work with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) so families receive the $500 payment per dependent they qualify for. Right now, for a variety of reasons, there are families who did not receive the cash assistance they are eligible to receive or have received only partial payments. These families are now being told by the IRS to wait until next year when they file their 2020 taxes
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Introduces Legislation to Relieve Families and Schools From School Meal Debt
WASHINGTON, D.C. [05/08/20]—This week, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) introduced her Suspend School Meal Debt Act, which would help families struggling to make ends meet amidst the coronavirus pandemic by cancelling school meal debt. School meal debt often results in students being denied school meals and experiencing lunch shaming by peers and school administrators. This meal debt also causes even further financial pressure and economic burdens for families already struggling just to keep their head above water. And according to the School Nutrition Association (SNA), the median amount of unpaid meal debt by school districts across the United States has soared 70 percent over
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Fighting to Secure Emergency Relief for U.S. Postal Service Amid Economic Fallout From Pandemic
WASHINGTON, D.C. [05/08/20]— As Congress works to craft the next bipartisan coronavirus (COVID-19) package, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) is fighting to secure emergency relief for the United States Postal Service (USPS) to help bridge budget gaps, continue nationwide service, and provide hazard pay and personal protective equipment (PPE) to workers. In a letter to Leaders Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Sen. Smith said that the USPS has become a lifeline for all communities during the COVID-19 pandemic by supporting small businesses, connecting loved ones, and delivering critical items such as prescriptions. But due to the economic impact of COVID-19, USPS estimates that overall mail volume could decline by over 50 percent by mid-summer, compared to the same period
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