Press Releases
Currently showing results related to Health Care
Durbin Talks E-Cigarettes, COVID-19 Relief, And Assistance For Afghan Refugees With HHS Secretary
SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today spoke by phone with Health and Human Services Secretary (HHS) Xavier Becerra about pressing public health priorities, including preventing youth e-cigarette use, addressing trauma and community violence, ensuring frontline hospitals and other health providers receive federal funding to assist with COVID-19 efforts, and the importance of swiftly assisting Afghan refugees with access to health and social services. In particular, … Continue Reading
08.27.21
Durbin Discusses New Cancer Treatment Center With University Of Chicago
SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today met virtually with Dr. Kenneth Polonsky, President of UChicago Medicine Health System, and Dr. Kunle Odunsi, Director of UChicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center, about the University of Chicago's new Comprehensive Cancer Center (UCMC). On the call, Durbin spoke about federal funding to support the hospital's mission and the institution's National Institutes of Health (NIH) designation as a comprehensive cancer center. UCMC is… Continue Reading
08.24.21
Durbin, Duckworth Announce Federal Grants For Three Rural EMS Agencies in Illinois
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced that three rural fire and emergency medical services (EMS) agencies in Illinois have been awarded a total of $381,091 in federal grant funding. This federal funding was created by Durbin's Supporting and Improving Rural EMS Needs (SIREN) Act, which was signed into law in 2018. Today's funding supports EMS agencies in responding to the opioid epidemic, COVID-19 pandemic, and other rural health challenges, inc… Continue Reading
08.10.21
Durbin: Big Pharma Must Be Held Accountable For Fueling The Opioid Crisis
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today delivered a speech on the Senate floor slamming the pharmaceutical industry for igniting the opioid overdose epidemic and profiting off the suffering of Americans. In his remarks, Durbin spoke about his efforts to rein in opioid overproduction after Big Pharma flooded communities in the United States with 100 billion painkillers between 2006 and 2014. In 2018, Durbin passed a bipartisan bill to strengthen the Drug Enforcement Admin… Continue Reading
08.03.21
Durbin, Duckworth Announce $5.7 Million In American Rescue Plan Funding To Increase Vaccine Access
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announce a total of $5.7 million in American Rescue Plan funding awarded to six Chicagoland health care providers to increase COVID-19 vaccinations in underserved communities. The funding, awarded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), will go to community-based organizations that are working to build vaccine confidence, share factual… Continue Reading
07.26.21
Durbin: Anti-Vax Rhetoric Is Risking The Lives Of Our Fellow Americans
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today delivered a speech on the Senate floor calling on Americans to get vaccinated as the COVID-19 Delta variant continues to spread across the U.S., leading to increased cases and hospitalizations. In his remarks, Durbin highlighted the importance of confronting vaccine misinformation and the need for a bipartisan commitment to promoting public health. "The vaccines that we all have access to right now will stop the Delta variant in it… Continue Reading
06.24.21
Durbin, Grassley, King Introduce Bill To Require Price Transparency In Prescription Drug Advertisements
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), and US. Senator Angus King (I-ME) today introduced the Drug-price Transparency for Competition (DTC) Act, a bill that would require price disclosures on advertisements for prescription drugs, in order to empower patients and reduce spending on medications. Last week, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report - requested by Durbin and Grassley - which found direct-to-consumer (DTC) ad… Continue Reading
06.23.21
Durbin: Any Vaping Product That Increases Youth Use Must Be Rejected By FDA
WASHINGTON-U.S Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today testified at a House Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on Economic and Consumer Policy hearing entitled, "An Epidemic Continues: Youth Vaping in America." Today's hearing focused on the role of Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in regulating e-cigarette products. After years of delay, the agency is in the process of determining which, if any, e-cigarettes will be allowed stay on the market. All e-cigarette manufacturers we… Continue Reading
06.21.21
Durbin: The Affordable Care Act Is Here To Stay
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today delivered a speech on the Senate floor recognizing the Supreme Court's historic decision to keep the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in place. The decision, announced last week, marks the third time the Supreme Court has upheld the law, which has allowed nearly one million Illinoisans to be insured. In his speech, Durbin spoke about the long history of the ACA, outlasting continued Republican effo… Continue Reading
06.17.21
Durbin, Grassley Statement On GAO Report On Prescription Drug Advertising's Impact On Medicare Spending
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) today released the following statement after the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report they had requested entitled, "Prescription Drugs: Medicare Spending on Drugs with Direct-to-Consumer Advertising," which found direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertisements of prescription drugs drive drastic increases in Medicare costs: "This GAO report found that Pharma's $6 billon annual spending s… Continue Reading
06.17.21
Durbin Statement On Supreme Court Ruling Dismissing Challenge To Affordable Care Act
WASHINGTON - Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, issued the following statement after the Supreme Court dismissed a case challenging the Affordable Care Act: "Families across America can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that yet another Republican effort to overturn the ACA was rejected. Health coverage and pre-existing condition protections for millions of Americans are here to stay." -30-… Continue Reading
06.16.21
Durbin, Capito, Colleagues Introduce Bipartisan Legislation To Address Childhood Trauma
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Shelly Moore Capito (R-WV), along with U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), today introduced bipartisan legislation to increase support for children who have been exposed to Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and trauma, including witnessing community violence, parental addiction, or abuse. The Resilience Investment, Support, and Expansion (RISE) from Trauma Act dramatically increases funding … Continue Reading
06.15.21
Durbin, Cicilline Announce Introduction Of Bill To Ban Child Labor On Tobacco Farms
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Congressman David N. Cicilline (D-RI-01) today announced the introduction of legislation to protect child workers from the dangers of exposure to tobacco plants, including nicotine poisoning. The Children Don't Belong on Tobacco Farms Act amends the Fair Labor Standards Act to prohibit children under the age of 18 from working in tobacco fields and coming into direct contact with tobacco plants or dried tobacco leaves by deeming this … Continue Reading
06.14.21
Durbin, Collins, Wenstrup, Underwood Introduce Bipartisan, Bicameral Bill To Make The VA Smoke-Free
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), along with U.S. Representatives Brad Wenstrup, D.P.M. (R-OH-02) and Lauren Underwood (D-IL-14), today introduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation to prohibit smoking at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The legislation would repeal an antiquated 1992 law that requires the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) to furnish and maintain designated indoor or outdoor smoking areas. Supported … Continue Reading
06.08.21
Durbin Statement On Senate Passage Of Bipartisan U.S. Innovation And Competition Act
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today released the following statement after the Senate voted to pass the bipartisan U.S. Innovation and Competition Act of 2021. The legislation represents the largest investment in U.S. science and technology leadership since the Apollo era. It will authorize more than $100 billion over five years to support breakthrough scientific discovery and technological innovation in 10 key areas that are vital to building an innovation economy … Continue Reading
05.19.21
Durbin, Duckworth Announce Nearly $105 Million In American Rescue Plan Funding For Mental Health And Addiction Treatment In Illinois
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced that Illinois has been awarded nearly $105 million in federal funding from the American Rescue Plan (ARP) to help communities grappling with mental health and addiction challenges that have been exacerbated during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Illinois Department of Human Services will receive $54.7 million in Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Block Grant funding and $50.2 million in Community Mental Hea… Continue Reading
05.19.21
Durbin Questions CDC Director On Community Violence Prevention, COVID-19 Vaccination Efforts
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies, today participated in a Subcommittee hearing on President Biden's Fiscal Year 2022 (FY22) Budget Request for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). During the hearing, Durbin questioned the witnesses-Director of the CDC, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, and Principal Deputy Director of the CDC, Dr. Anne Schuchat-… Continue Reading
05.17.21
Durbin, Wyden, Krishnamoorthi, DeLauro Press Biden Administration To Support Tobacco Tax Equity Act
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR), and U.S. Representatives Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL-08) and Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03) today pressed the Biden Administration to support their proposal to close loopholes exploited by the tobacco industry, establish a new tax on e-cigarettes, and increase the tobacco tax rate within legislative negotiations surrounding the American Jobs Plan and American Families Plan. In a letter to Brian Deese, Director of th… Continue Reading
05.12.21
Senate Passes Durbin, Collins Bipartisan Resolution Recognizing Important Work Of Doulas
WASHINGTON-Today, the U.S. Senate passed a bipartisan resolution introduced by U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) recognizing the work and contributions of doulas towards improving pregnancy, birth, and postpartum outcomes; lowering pregnancy and childbirth related costs; and reducing the impact of racial bias on pregnant and postpartum women of color. Further, the resolution designates the week of May 9th as National Doula Week, in honor of the i… Continue Reading
04.29.21
Durbin Statement On Proposed FDA Ban Of Menthol Cigarettes And Flavored Cigars
WASHINGTON-U.S Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today released the following statement after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced it will propose a ban on the use of menthol in cigarettes, as well as a ban on the use of all flavors-including menthol-in cigars: "Cigarettes addict, sicken, and kill. For years, Big Tobacco has added menthol flavor to mask the harshness, and targeted these addictive products to Black smokers. There is zero public health justification for allowi… Continue Reading