Coronavirus Federal Response Update From Congressman Andy Barr

Coronavirus Federal Response Update From

Congressman Andy Barr

I want to begin with some inspiring news. This week, my office assisted in freeing up a major supply of Propofol, an anesthetic used to sedate patients on ventilators that is in short supply nationwide as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Late last week, I received an urgent message from a constituent who works for Sagent Pharmaceuticals, which manufactures Propofol and had a large shipment of its product seized by the Italian government. We were able to reach out to Rear Admiral John Polowcyzk, head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) supply chain task force, and the official responsible for coordinating the federal government’s procurement and distribution of medical supplies, to inform him of the problem. On Wednesday, I received confirmation that the shipment was released by the Italian government and was on its way to the United States. This shipment includes 24,422 packs of product which can generate 410,000 vials, an amount sufficient to provide a full month supply of desperately needed anesthetic for critically-ill, intubated COVID-19 patients.

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Paycheck Protection Program

The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) which was created by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, is saving jobs and businesses throughout Kentucky and the nation. Since the rollout of the PPP, more than 1.6 million forgivable loans have been approved by almost 5,000 participating lenders totaling approximately $350 billion to American businesses. This includes over 17,000 approved loans and $3.4 billion in loans to Kentucky small businesses.

To put the demand for this program in perspective, the Small Business Administration (SBA) processed more loans in the last 14 days than it did in the last 14 years! But this could not have happened without the efficiency and productivity of the professionals in the financial services industry who worked tirelessly to serve their customers and originate these loans. To help these financial institutions, I personally asked Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to establish a liquidity facility to provide immediate, additional funding to participating lenders so they could continue to originate PPP loans. I am glad that the Treasury Department worked with the Federal Reserve to honor that request.

Congress has a responsibility to support these businesses and ensure that our efforts to flatten the curve do not flatten the economy and these small businesses along with it. Recently, I called on Congress to appropriate additional funding to the PPP to ensure that no small business or worker is left behind in this rescue effort. Regrettably, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is blocking a vote on this, demanding policy changes that would add bureaucracy and red tape to the program and spending on other relief funds that are not yet exhausted.

Main Street Business Lending Program

Last week, as authorized by the CARES Act, the Federal Reserve announced the creation of the Main Street Business Lending Program which will support small and mid-sized businesses that were in good financial standing before the public health crisis. Guidance on this facility is forthcoming, but these low-interest loans, backed by the Treasury Department’s Exchange Stabilization Fund, will be available through commercial banks in an amount based on the company’s 2019 earnings, up to $25mm. Millions of American workers depend on the continued viability of these companies, the activities of which have been interrupted by the pandemic and the related shutdown of the economy. I worked with my Republican colleagues on the House Financial Services Committee to compile a document with more information on this program which, like the PPP, is designed to save American jobs:

Economic Impact Payment Update

This week, the Treasury Department announced that 80 million Americans with bank account information on file with the IRS would be receiving their Economic Impact Payment checks via direct deposit by week’s end. The full amount of these recovery rebates, enacted as part of the CARES Act, is $1,200 for individuals with adjusted gross income at or below $75,000 and $2,400 for couples with adjusted gross income at or below $150,000. Families with children will receive an additional $500 per child. Rebates will be gradually reduced for individuals and couples above those income thresholds and ultimately phased out at $99,000 for individuals and $198,000 for couples. In order to be eligible, a person must have a valid Social Security Number.

The IRS and Treasury Department also announced a web application for individuals to use if they haven’t received their rebate check. The “Get My Payment” app launched this week allows you to track the status of your payment. You can click this link to access the app on your desktop, and it is free to download on any tablet or mobile device. Please also stay vigilant against potential rebate check scams. The IRS will not call you, text you, email you or contact you on social media asking for personal or bank account information for the purpose of delivering the economic impact payments.

Veterans Benefits Fairness and Transparency Act

This week, I introduced H.R. 6493, the Veterans Benefits Fairness and Transparency Act. My legislation protects veterans applying for VA disability benefits by requiring the VA to continue to make available on its website disability benefits questionnaires (DBQs) that medical providers and others assisting veterans use to submit evidence supporting disability claims. In addition, the bill cuts down on bureaucratic inefficiencies by requiring the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) to accept a veteran's DBQ for one year after it is completed and filed with the VBA, regardless if the VBA updates or changes the form. Veterans in Kentucky have reported receiving denial of disability claims to which they are legally entitled solely because the VBA changed its forms without their knowledge.

Recently, the VBA announced its intention to stop making DBQs available on its website. This decision will undermine veterans’ ability to submit evidence in support of disability compensation because the VBA has closed its offices to in person meetings due to the COVID-19 pandemic and veterans, their representatives and their medical providers will not have access to the DBQ forms online. According to the VBA, the “purpose of a DBQ is to ensure the clinician performing the exam captures and records all the information needed by VBA claims processors to make a decision on a Veteran’s claim.”

Ultimately, this legislation will ensure that veterans’ disability claims will not be stalled during the COVID-19 pandemic and veterans, their representatives and medical providers will retain uninterrupted access to DBQ forms online throughout the duration of the public health crisis. The idea for this legislation was brought to me by a member of the Sixth District Veterans Coalition, who regularly assists fellow veterans with the VA disability claims process.

Testing & Therapeutics

More than 3.3 million Americans have been tested for COVID-19, more than any other country, with over 675,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 nationwide and almost 2,500 cases in Kentucky.

Today, I joined several colleagues on a call with U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar, who provided an update on the progress of diagnostic and antibody testing. In addition to issuing a growing number of emergency use authorizations for more rapid point of care diagnostic tests, including the Rapid ID NOW test which Abbott Laboratories has been producing at a rate of 50,000 tests per day since April 1, the FDA has authorized three new antibody or serology tests, which will help identify people who have immunity and will assist in safely reopening the economy.

In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), along with the Departments of Labor and the Treasury, issued guidance this week that Americans with private health insurance have coverage for diagnostic testing and related services, as well as antibody testing, at no cost. This supplements action that I supported in Congress early on in the pandemic to guarantee that cost will not be a barrier to receiving aCOVID-19 test.

Supplies

I have been working diligently to advocate for our frontline medical professionals to ensure they have the personal protective equipment (PPE) they need. These efforts include coordinating and advocating with FEMA, HHS and the White House Coronavirus Task Force to get desperately need supplies from the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS), the nation’s largest supply of potentially life-saving pharmaceuticals and medical supplies. To date, Kentucky has received three shipments from the SNS including:

On March 21, Kentucky received a shipment of 41,744 N95 Masks, 99,443 Surgical Masks, 18,936 Face Shields, 15,439 Surgical Gowns, 79 Coveralls and 54,972 Gloves.

On March 24, Kentucky received 41,744 N95 Masks, 99,443 Surgical Masks, 18,936 Face Shields, 15,439 Surgical Gowns, 79 Coveralls and 54,972 Gloves.

On March 30, Kentucky received 60,450 N95 Masks, 143,511 Surgical Masks, 31,207 Face Shields, 25,688 Surgical Gowns, 1,765 Coveralls and 184,258 Gloves.

This week, I also provided Admiral Polowcyzk data on the specific PPE needs and burn rate of Kentucky’s hospitals, nursing homes and skilled nursing facilities. He acknowledged the helpfulness of this information as he works with the six large healthcare supply chain companies, which move more than one billion pieces of PPE a week to healthcare professionals.

Furthermore, the Department of Health and Human Services announced five new contracts this week for ventilator production under the Defense Production Act. This is in addition to two contracts announced earlier this month. HHS has now finalized contracts to supply 6,190 ventilators to the Strategic National Stockpile by May 8, 29,510 new ventilators by June 1, and 137,431 new ventilators by the end of 2020. Importantly, every American who has needed a ventilator has received a ventilator, and every American who has needed a hospital bed has received a hospital bed.

Appreciation

I want to thank all of our frontline medical professionals, the talented and dedicated doctors, nurses and healthcare professionals who continue to serve their patients each day. I also want to acknowledge the courage of millions of Americans who are unsung heroes, going to work every day as police officers, fire fighters, paramedics, grocery store employees, truck drivers, postal workers, bank tellers, sanitation and cleaning professionals as well as all the other Americans still working despite the danger this virus poses to them. Their sacrifice helps our communities maintain some normalcy as so many temporary changes are occurring.

I continue to seek your feedback and ideas as Congress works on a bold agenda to guide America through the COVID-19 pandemic and engineer the great American comeback that is forthcoming. You can always reach out to my Lexington office (859) 219-1366 or my Washington office (202) 225-4706 with your input. Lastly, if you would like to stay informed on what is happening in Washington, D.C. and around the Sixth Congressional District, again, I encourage you to sign up to receive my e-newsletter by visiting https://barr.house.gov/newsletter-subscription. If you want to unsubscribe to my e-newsletter, you can do so by clicking here.