Senator Hassan Calls for Additional Senate Finance Hearings Focused on COVID-19 and its Impact on Nursing Homes

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan today called on the Senate Finance Committee to hold hearings on COVID-19 and its impact on older Americans living in long-term care facilities.

Senator Hassan Presses Top Budget Official Nominee to Justify Proposing Massive Budget Cuts to Critical Public Health Agencies Amid COVID-19 Pandemic

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan, ranking member of the subcommittee tasked with overseeing federal spending, pressed Russell Vought, nominee to be Director for the Office of Management and Budget, to justify the administration proposing a budget for the next fiscal year that includes severe cuts to public health spending amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Senator Hassan Statement on President Trump’s Press Conference and Photo-Op Yesterday

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) released the following statement after President Trump’s press conference and photo op yesterday:

NH Delegation Announces More Than $1.4 Million to Boost NH Hospitals’ Readiness & Response Capabilities to COVID-19

(Manchester, NH) – Today, U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and Representatives Annie Kuster (NH-02) and Chris Pappas (NH-01) announced that $1,451,902 will be awarded to the Foundation for Healthy Communities in support of its efforts to bolster and expand New Hampshire health care providers’ readiness and response capabilities to the COVID-19 pandemic and other health care challenges. The funding was awarded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Hospital Preparedness Program, as a part of more than $350 million in hospital preparedness appropriations provided under the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act and the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act that were passed by Congress and signed into law.

Senator Hassan, Colleagues Call for Robust Support for Children’s Mental Health Care in Upcoming COVID-19 Response Legislation

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) joined Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) and 19 additional colleagues in calling for robust funding for children’s behavioral health care in upcoming COVID-19 response legislation.

Senator Hassan Statement on President Trump’s Veto of Bipartisan Measure to Protect Defrauded Student Borrowers

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan, a member of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, released the following statement after President Trump vetoed a bipartisan measure that would overturn the Department of Education’s “borrower defense” rule, a proposal that will effectively deny students who were cheated or defrauded by predatory for-profit colleges of the debt relief that they are entitled to under law.

Senator Hassan Leads Colleagues in Raising Concerns Over Declining Child Immunization Rates, Calling for CDC Action

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) led 16 of her colleagues in calling on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to address the declining rate of routine child immunizations for measles and other dangerous viruses amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Senator Hassan Leads Colleagues in Calling for CDC Guidance on Reopening Long-Term Care Facilities to Visitors

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) led her colleagues in calling on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to issue specific guidelines for when long-term care facilities can safely reopen their doors to visitors, and what steps long-term care facilities should take to ensure the safety of residents and family members when they do so. In addition to Senator Hassan, the letter was signed by Senators Bob Casey (D-PA), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Jack Reed (D-RI), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH).

Senator Hassan, FCC Commissioner Rosenworcel Discuss Broadband Access with NH Business, Health Care, and Education Leaders

U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan led a virtual roundtable discussion today, along with Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, and health, education, and business leaders from across New Hampshire about expanding broadband in the state’s rural and underserved communities amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Senator Hassan, Colleagues Press FDA for Transparency When Delayed Tobacco Application Deadline Finally Takes Effect

(Washington, D.C.) –  U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, joined Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), ranking member of the Senate HELP Committee, and eight of her Democratic Senate colleagues in writing a letter to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn, urging transparency when a long-delayed application deadline for e-cigarettes and certain other unauthorized tobacco products currently on the market goes into effect later this year. Pursuant to a federal court order, manufacturers of e-cigarettes and other deemed tobacco products have until September 9, 2020 to file marketing applications for such products that have been marketed without the required authorization since at least August 8, 2016, or face FDA enforcement action. The Senators pressed FDA to provide a list of marketed products that are the subject of an application for approval submitted to FDA by the deadline.

Senator Hassan Statement on Retirement of State Senator Martha Fuller Clark

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan released the below statement following the announcement that New Hampshire State Senator Martha Fuller Clark (D-Portsmouth) will be retiring at the end of her current term in the New Hampshire State Senate. 

NH Delegation Announces More than $356K for New Efficient Vehicles for Nashua Public Transit

(Washington, DC) – Today, U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and Representatives Annie Kuster (NH-02) and Chris Pappas (NH-01) announced a $356,046 Low or No Emission Grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to replace the three oldest vehicles in the Nashua Transit System’s fleet – two 2009 diesel vans and one 1999 gasoline-powered supervisor vehicle – with two new hybrid electric gasoline vans and one fully electric car and electric charging station. These new vehicles will reduce emissions from the city’s fixed route fleet while also increasing fuel efficiency.

President Trump Extends National Guard COVID-19 Deployment Following Bipartisan Calls from Lawmakers, Including Senator Hassan

WASHINGTON – Following bipartisan calls from Senator Hassan and others, President Donald Trump today announced that the administration would extend federal funding for National Guard deployments during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Trump administration previously said that it planned to end federal funding of the deployments to help respond to the COVID-19 pandemic one day before many National Guard members would qualify for additional federal education and retirement benefits.

Senators Hassan, Scott, Booker, Loeffler Call on Education Department to Support Students Whose Financial Aid Eligibility is Impacted by COVID-19 Pandemic

WASHINGTON – Senators Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Tim Scott (R-SC), Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) are urging the Department of Education to make important changes to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form and website to account for disruptions in a student’s financial situation, such as lost job or income, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Senator Hassan Statement on U.S. Death Toll from COVID-19 Topping 100,000

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan released the following statement as the death toll in the United States hits 100,000 as a result of the COVID-19 virus:

Shaheen Leads NH Delegation Call to Trump Admin to Expeditiously Award More Grant Funding for Hospitals Secured through the CARES Act

(Washington, DC) – U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) sent a letter with Representatives Annie Kuster (NH-02) and Chris Pappas (NH-01) to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar, urging the administration to expeditiously award more grant dollars from the Provider Relief Fund established under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The delegation argued that New Hampshire hospitals on the frontlines of the COVID-19 outbreak need additional support to confront increased expenses and reduced revenues associated with the nation’s response to the virus. Shaheen, Hassan, Kuster and Pappas also pointed out that while some relief has been provided, New Hampshire hospitals in non-rural areas have been left out of recent disbursements because of nationwide-focused eligibility provisions that the administration is using to dole out so-called “hot spot” funding.

Senators Hassan, Thune Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Support Passenger Rail in New Hampshire and Across the Country

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and John Thune (R-SD) introduced the Railroad Rehabilitation and Financing Innovation Act, bipartisan legislation to improve the Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing (RRIF) loan program, which is designed to provide direct loans to help develop passenger and short line railroads in New Hampshire and across the country. The bipartisan legislation would make it easier for businesses and communities to apply for this loan program and increase the flexibility of it. The loan could be used to help finance projects like the Capitol Corridor Project that would connect Manchester and Nashua to Boston via commuter rail.

Senators Hassan, Heinrich, Whitehouse Lead Colleagues in Calling on FERC to Reject Petition Aimed at Upending States’ Net Metering Programs

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) today led 21 of their Senate and House colleagues in calling on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to reject a petition by the New England Ratepayers Association (NERA) that aims to upend states’ net metering programs. Net metering allows consumers and businesses who generate some or all of their own electricity, particularly through wind and solar energy technology, to be compensated for the excess energy that they provide to the electric grid and other customers.

NH Delegation Announces $19.78M in Funding Through CARES Act to Support Nursing Facilities Amid COVID-19 Pandemic

(Washington, DC) – Today, U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and Representatives Annie Kuster (NH-02) and Chris Pappas (NH-01) announced that New Hampshire nursing facilities will receive $19.78 million in federal assistance through the bipartisan Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act that was passed by Congress and signed into law.

Senators Warren, Markey and Colleagues Urge Trump Administration to Prepare for Simultaneous Peaks of 2020 Flu Season, COVID-19 Outbreak

Washington, DC - United States Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) led a letter to Vice President Mike Pence, head of the White House  Coronavirus Task Force, regarding the Trump Administration's efforts to prepare for a resurgence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) during this year's seasonal influenza, which Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Robert Redfield warned could create unprecedented strain on our health care system. The letter urged the administration to activate the resources of the federal government now to increase capacity, supplies, and vaccinations to prevent public health and medical systems from being overwhelmed by simultaneous peaks of both of these deadly infectious diseases in the fall. Joining Senators Warren and Markey are Senators Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), and Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.).