Healthcare

WASHINGTON— The Congressional Tri-Caucus Chairs – composed of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC), Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC), and Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) –are calling on the Trump Administration to ensure there are no racial or ethnic health disparities regarding the testing and treatment of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). In a letter, the Tri-Caucus Chairs urge Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Azar and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Redfield to work with the Tri-Caucus to ensure nationwide demographic data is released publicly and in real time and to find the best approach in collecting disaggregated data without compromising data collection or the integrity of CDC data.

WASHINGTON— Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20), Chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) issued the following statement to mark April as Minority Health Month:

WASHINGTON— United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Representatives Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), House Natural Resources Committee Chair; Nydia M. Velázquez (D-N.Y.), House Small Business Committee Chair; and Joaquin Castro (D-Texas), Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair; wrote to Vice President Mike Pence, head of the White House Task Force on Coronavirus, regarding the economic and public health vulnerabilities of Puerto Rico amid the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The lawmakers requested information on how the Trump administration will help the island manage the crisis.

WASHINGTON— Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) leaders called on Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia, Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Robert Redford to take necessary measures to protect farmworkers and their families during this public health crisis. Throughout this public health crisis, there has not been a day when these essential workers have stopped showing up to work. At the same time, farmworkers often do not have the necessary resources or information, health benefits, or direct cash assistance as other US workers. As we mark the last day of Farmworker Awareness Week and Cesar Chavez Day, our government must work to address any ongoing and emerging needs farmworkers may have and ensure that farmworkers are not left behind as they continue to work through this public health crisis in order to guarantee food reaches American grocery stores.

WASHINGTON — Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) Chairman Joaquin Castro (TX-20), CHC members, and immigration experts will discuss why the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) must immediately release non-priority and low-risk detainees, vulnerable immigrants, and migrant children from US custody, as federal detention facility conditions leave detainees extremely vulnerable to the novel coronavirus. ICE facilities have shown themselves to be ill-prepared to provide adequate medical care to vulnerable detainees and have had issues containing outbreaks. Further, ICE often has to rely on local medical facilities to treat ill detainees. The novel coronavirus is a significant threat on a far greater scale. ICE’s failure to reduce detention numbers and mitigate the spread of COVID-19 has a real possibility of creating a severe health crisis for detention centers and overwhelming local health care facilities.

WASHINGTON— Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) Members called on Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Acting Secretary Chad Wolf and Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Robert Redfield, MD to provide further information on the CDC’s Order that restricts the entry of migrants and asylum seekers into the United States as way to protect against the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Given the Trump Administration’s proven anti-immigrant record, many fear that DHS is using the CDC’s recent order as a way to deny our legal obligation to asylum seekers, including some unaccompanied migrant children. It is in inappropriate for the Trump Administration to use this public health crisis as a pretext to send hundreds of asylum seekers and children back to dangerous conditions, where they may face oppression, persecution and even death.

WASHINGTON— On Monday and again today, President Donald Trump in two tweets referred to the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) as the “Chinese Virus.” He later doubled down on the use of this term during a press conference earlier today. This violates guidance issued by the World Health Organization and the promises by members of Trump’s own administration, including Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar and Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Dr. Robert Redfield, to refrain from using that term precisely to describe COVID-19 because it incites blame, racism, and hatred towards Asian Americans, putting them at risk for prejudice and violence. Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) Chairwoman Judy Chu, Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) Chairman Joaquin Castro, Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) Chairwoman Karen Bass, and Congressional Native American Caucus Co-Chair Deb Haaland issued the following joint statement: