Senator Smith believes that every person deserves affordable, high-quality health care and is fighting to protect, improve, and expand comprehensive health care coverage for Minnesotans.
A top priority for Sen. Smith is addressing the high cost of health care. Too many Minnesotans are burdened by the high cost of their health care coverage, and others are going without insurance or prescription medications. Sen. Smith is working with her colleagues on both sides of the aisle to address the underlying issues that make health care expensive, starting with the high price of prescription drugs.
While working to make health care more affordable, Sen. Smith is also working to ensure that every Minnesotan has access to mental health care, which she believes is an essential part of comprehensive health coverage. She is working to enforce federal laws that require equitable coverage of mental health and medical care, and she is fighting for expanded access to mental health services across the age continuum.
Sen. Smith also opposes any efforts to limit coverage for Minnesotans, slash Medicaid or Medicare, deny coverage to people with preexisting conditions, and interfere with a woman’s right to make decisions about her own health care. Minnesotans and people across this country rely on their health coverage, and believes that any attempt to take that away is unacceptable.
Finally, Sen. Smith is a champion for rural communities, who face unique barriers that limit their access to quality, affordable health care. As co-chair of the bipartisan Rural Health Caucus, Sen. Smith is working with her colleagues to eliminate the health disparities between rural and urban communities.
Latest Releases
U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Jim Banks Introduce New Bipartisan Youth Suicide Prevention Legislation
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-MN) and Jim Banks (R-IN) introduced the Raising Awareness for Youth Suicide Prevention (RAYS) Act, requiring middle and high schools to include mental health and suicide prevention information on student identification cards and school websites. The hotline and text line has been used nearly 20 million times since it was created in 2022. “We can’t afford to leave holes in the safety net we’ve built to catch people when they’re going through hard times or struggling with their mental health. That’s why we created the 988 hotline in the first place. Now, we need to make sure everyone, especially young people, know that resources are available to them when they need it,” said Senator Smith. “This is a common-sense idea to help those facing mental health challenges. It tells them that they are not alone and help is out there.” “It is unacceptable that suicide is the leading cause of death for Americans under 21. This legislation will expand access to vital resources and help save lives,” said Senator Banks. The RAYS Act would require secondary education institutions to provide contact information for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, the Crisis Text Line, and a state or local suicide prevention hotline selected by the school, if available, on the back of all student ID cards. If a school cannot meet this requirement because it does not distribute physical student ID cards, cost is a barrier, or some other administrative burden,
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Demands Answers from Department of Education on Cuts to Mental Health Programs
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) joined 20 of her Senate colleagues in demanding answers on recent reports that the Trump Administration had cut approximately $1 billion in federal mental health grants to help schools hire more psychologists, counselors, and other mental health workers. Rochester Public Schools had nearly $2 million in mental health grant funding cancelled. The funding would have trained and licensed staff to provide counseling and other mental health services to students across the school district. Smith and her colleagues also expressed concern about how these cuts will affect schools’ ability to support students and their behavioral health needs and questioned how the Department plans to address the youth mental health crisis. “This abrupt decision to cut critical funding that was enacted into law under the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act and annual appropriations acts and already planned to be used in states, communities, and schools is deeply troubling and not consistent with our intent of providing these funds to support the health and wellbeing of children across the nation,” wrote the Senators. “The uncertainty that is being created by the Department of Education is jeopardizing the work that has been done to increase comprehensive youth mental and behavioral health services, and the availability of school-based mental health professionals across the country.” “The termination of this grant is a big step backward,” Rochester Public Schools Superintendent Kent Pekel wrote in a letter. “Thousands of students who might have received counseling and support to address challenges to their mental health, such as depression, anxiety, and thoughts of suicide, will not receive
U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Elizabeth Warren, Patty Murray Introduce Bill to Protect Federal Funding for Birth Control, Reproductive Health Care Services
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-MN), Patty Murray (D-WA), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) introduced the Expanding Access to Family Planning Act, a bill that would safeguard funding for Title X – the country’s only federal program dedicated to providing family planning and preventive health services, including birth control, cancer screenings, testing for sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and reproductive health care – following attacks on the program by the Trump Administration last week. Title X clinics serve 4 million people annually, and in 2023 alone, more than 1.5 million visits to Planned Parenthood health centers were made possible by the program. The
U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Amy Klobuchar Press Administration on Potential Closure of Indian Health Service Office in Bemidji
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.), a member of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) wrote a letter demanding answers about the potential termination of the Indian Health Service office lease in Bemidji. In a letter to General Services Administration (GSA) Administrator Stephen Ehikian and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., the Senators highlighted the devastating impact this decision could have on the health and well-being of thousands of Native Americans across the region. “Thousands of members of federally recognized Tribal Nations receive healthcare within the Bemidji Area Office’s purview. This
U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Amy Klobuchar Announce Funding for Minnesota Rural Emergency Medical Services
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – As access to emergency medical services (EMS) continues to be a top issue for leaders in Minnesota, U.S. Senators Tina Smith and Amy Klobuchar (both D-MN) announced federal funding to bolster rural EMS services in the Southwest Metro region and the Arrowhead counties of Aitkin, Carlton, Cook, Itasca, Koochiching, Lake and St. Louis in Northeastern Minnesota. The funding was made available through the SIREN Act, which both Senators supported and was signed into law in October of this year. The Arrowhead EMS Association will receive $5,000,000 to pilot real-time tele-EMS technologies to connect area responders to emergency personnel in areas with
U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Susan Collins Introduce Bill to Build Health Care Workforce in Rural Areas
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-MN) and Susan Collins (R-ME) introduced legislation to improve access to health care and address the physician shortage in rural areas. The Rural Residency Planning and Development Act of 2024 would authorize the Rural Residency Planning and Development Program to continue providing start-up funding to rural hospitals, medical schools, and other organizations to establish new rural residency programs. Among current medical residency programs, only 2 percent of residency training occurs in rural areas, and in Minnesota, 80 percent of counties qualify as mental health professional shortage areas. The Rural Residency Planning and Development Act of 2024 will help address the health care
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