Tag: Dean Phillips

Dean Phillips Votes ‘No’ to $2.2 Trillion COVID Package: Calls for Bipartisan Compromise

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On October 1, 2020, Rep. Dean Phillips voted against “HEROES 2.0,” the $2.2 trillion coronavirus stimulus bill offered by Nancy Pelosi and House leadership, joining 17 other Democrats, 189 Republicans and one Independent as the bill passed the House 214 to 207. Phillips released the following statement:

“Having co-led the Problem Solvers Caucus working group that developed the March to Common Ground bipartisan COVID relief framework, my commitment to achieving a solution for Americans remains steadfast. 

In light of divided government, legislation must be designed to pass not just the House, but also the Senate, and be signed into law by the President. And, despite my belief in and support of the content of HEROES 2.0, it was not that bill.

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A March to Common Ground

Hi Neighbors,

This past week, our country lost Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a trailblazer and a role model to many, including myself. I am saddened in ways I never imagined possible. May her memory be a blessing and may her legacy live through all of us.

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Reciting the Mourner’s Kaddish next to Congressman Eric Swalwell and his daughter, with her “I Look Up To Ruth Bader Ginsburg” book in hand, is a moment I’ll never forget

Today, I am checking in to give you an update on the work I am doing in DC:

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Rep. Phillips introduces bill to improve telehealth as pandemic threatens Americans’ Access to Care

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Thursday, Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN) and Steve Chabot (R-OH) announced they have introduced the bipartisan Telehealth Coverage and Payment Parity Act (H.R. 8308) aimed at improving Americans’ access to health care whenever and wherever they need it. The bipartisan legislation pushes for permanent coverage and payment parity for telehealth services at the federal level.

With the country grappling with the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic, safe access to medical providers – especially for the sick and vulnerable – is more important now than it ever has been. Yet much of the innovation in telehealth demonstrated these past months will reverse when the pandemic is over. H.R. 8308 will ensure the country continues telehealth payment parity past the pandemic, increasing Americans access to care. The bill will require payers to cover the same telehealth services as Medicare, establish parity between in-person and telehealth covered services, and eliminate burdensome and unnecessary regulations around location for providers.

“It’s time to build a 21st century health care system that utilizes technology and prevention to keep people well,” said Rep. Phillips. “For many conditions, there is no simply no reason for healthcare to be tied to brick and mortar institutions. Telehealth has allowed us to effectively deliver care during the COVID-19 pandemic, but some of the flexibilities put in place to ensure Americans have access to care will be reversed when the public health emergency expires unless Congress acts to preserve them. I’m on a mission to make our progress permanent.”

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Rep. Phillips Co-Sponsors Landmark Legislation to Lower Costs, Increase Access to Health Care

Legislation will create a public option for Minnesotans to buy into the state’s Medicaid program

WASHINGTON, DC — Yesterday, Rep. Dean Phillips announced he is co-sponsoring the State Public Option Act, landmark health care legislation that will allow Americans to buy into their state’s Medicaid program. Prohibitively high costs continue to deny many Minnesotans access to healthcare every day even as the COVID-19 pandemic threatens our community. A state-based public option would open up healthcare access to thousands of Minnesotans while providing a viable health insurance option for those without employer-provided insurance.

Under this Medicaid Buy-in program, states will set the terms for how the public-option will be implemented. Enrollees will have access to Medicaid’s provider network and benefit set and the state will determine the premiums, deductibles, and other cost-sharing. Cost will be much lower due to smaller administrative overhead. A 2013 Congressional Budget Office estimate of a similar public option found that premiums would be on average 7-8% less than on the individual market.

“Lowering the cost of health care for my constituents and all Americans has been a top priority since I joined Congress in 2019,”said Rep. Phillips, “and this legislation does just that. The State Public Option Act will expand health coverage to thousands of Minnesotans, allow states to become policy innovators, and encourage more people to pursue their dreams with affordable health insurance. A public health insurance option is the next step toward achieving a health care system with truly universal access, as we continue to grapple with a pandemic that has changed so many aspects of our lives. We are all connected — my neighbor’s health is about my health, too.”

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Rep. Dean Phillips on the Passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

There are few names that command as much reverence as Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I’m saddened in ways I never imagined possible.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was an eternal optimist who never gave up on the American people, and who never stopped pushing us to be better. She embodied the strength and resolve of the human spirit – and of our beloved democracy.

This is a monumental loss for our country. May her memory be a blessing and may her legacy live through all of us.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg worked tirelessly to lay the groundwork of her vision for America – a united nation that did not discriminate on the basis of gender. And with steady conviction she zeroed in on distinct violations of civil liberties until that groundwork became precedent, and precedent became the law of our land.

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Phillips-led bipartisan group offers COVID framework to break impasse

WASHINGTON, DC – Yesterday, the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus – 25 Democrats and 25 Republicans – unveiled its “March To Common Ground” framework to help break the gridlock on the latest COVID-19 relief package and encourage negotiators to get back to the table. 

The 50-member bipartisan Caucus, led by policy working group leaders Reps. Dean Phillips (D-MN) and Dusty Johnson (R-SD) along with Problem Solvers Caucus members Reps. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA), Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH), and Co-Chairs Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) and Tom Reed (R-NY), came together to develop the framework after extensive listening to constituents and outreach to stakeholders over the past six weeks.

The package addresses key areas of need, including COVID-19 testing, unemployment insurance, direct stimulus, worker and liability protection, small business and non-profit support, food security, schools and child care, housing, election support, and state and local aid.

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Rep. Phillips introduces a bill to ban political use of White House grounds

WASHINGTON, DC— Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN) has introduced a bill banning the use of White House grounds for political purposes – the Our Lawn Act.  

For nearly a century, the Hatch Act has existed to provide a clear distinction between public servants and electoral candidates. Both parties have observed and respected this law for decades and have condemned apparent Hatch Act violations.

Unfortunately, this administration has shown, through providing the White House and other federal property as a staging area for the Republican National Convention, that we must continue to work to ensure that officials are not misusing public property and the prestige of office for their own political gain.  These actions misappropriated public resources for the private benefit of the Republican Party and put federal employees in a position where their employers were ordering them to violate the law.

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Is Minnesota really in play?

No Republican has carried Minnesota since 1972. But Trump’s team is increasingly confident about his chances in the state — even more so than in Wisconsin — and they’re dwarfing Biden’s television advertising budget there over the coming weeks.

We recently spoke to first-term Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips, who tells us Democrats should be taking very seriously the possibility of losing his state’s 10 electoral votes — the same number Wisconsin offers. He also called on Biden to visit his suburban Minneapolis district as soon as possible.

If there’s anywhere Trump’s “law and order” message resonates, it could be Minnesota, an overwhelmingly white state where daily protests continue more than 100 days after George Floyd’s death. History suggests Trump has an uphill climb there for sure, but it’s worth remembering that he only lost the state by 45,000 votes four years ago. Continue reading.

Trump set to spend more on ads in Minnesota than Michigan or Wisconsin in 2020 homestretch

President Donald Trump’s campaign is currently planning to spend more money on advertising in Minnesota than in either Wisconsin or Michigan during the final stretch of the 2020 race, a significant shift in strategy as its path to 270 electoral votes narrows.

Trump’s campaign is slated to pour more than $14 million into Minnesota between the beginning of September through Election Day, compared to $12.6 million in Michigan and $8.3 million in Wisconsin, according to Advertising Analytics, a media tracking firm. The sums include ads booked to run on TV, radio and online.

It’s a reversal from the previous three months, when the president’s campaign had devoted more money to Michigan and Wisconsin, two Upper Midwest battlegrounds that Trump surprisingly carried in 2016, but where he has seen his standing slip. The Trump campaign still has more ad money reserved, about $15 million, in another key swing state they took from the Democratic column in 2016, Pennsylvania. Continue reading.

Chamber of Commerce backs freshmen House Dems, marking shift

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has decided to endorse 23 freshmen House Democrats in this fall’s elections, a bipartisan move by an organization that has long leaned strongly toward Republicans.

The country’s largest business group is also endorsing 29 freshmen House Republicans, said a person familiar with the organization’s decision who described the actions. Even so, the decision has prompted internal divisions, with some state chamber officials criticizing the national group’s decision to back freshmen Democrats in their areas.

The House freshmen the chamber is endorsing include several who face tough reelections, such as Reps. Abby Finkenauer and Cindy Axne of Iowa, Andy Kim of New Jersey, Xochitl Torres Small of New Mexico, Anthony Brindisi of New York, Kendra Horn of Oklahoma, Joe Cunningham of South Carolina and Elaine Luria and Abigail Spanberger of Virginia. Continue reading.