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U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Thom Tillis, Cory Booker and Todd Young Introduce Resolution Honoring 100th Anniversary of the National League of Cities
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-MN), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Todd Young (R-IN) introduced a resolution honoring the 100th anniversary of the National League of Cities. The National League of Cities is the oldest and largest organization of municipal governments in the United States, representing over 19,000 cities, towns, and villages and more than 218,000,000 residents. Senators Smith, Tillis and Booker served in local government before coming to Congress. “I always say that the best ideas come from those closest to the work, and local governments exemplify that best,” said Senator Smith. “As former Chief of Staff to the Mayor of Minneapolis, I know firsthand how important local government is to the functioning of our nation. I am so grateful for the leadership and partnership of all local government officials and staff across Minnesota.” “As someone who served on the Cornelius Board of Commissioners, I know first-hand that local government is the one closest to the people and can play a vital role in improving their quality of life,” said Senator Tillis. “I am proud to co-lead this resolution honoring the 100-year anniversary of the National League of Cities, and to recognize their work to support municipal officials in North Carolina and the rest of the country.” “Through my experience serving in the local government of Newark, first as a city councilman and then as mayor, I’ve witnessed the invaluable contributions municipalities make to our nation’s fabric,” said Senator Booker. “Local governments and leaders play a pivotal role in shaping our communities, and the
U.S. SENATOR TINA SMITH ANNOUNCES ABORTION CLINIC DIRECTOR TAMMI KROMENAKER AS STATE OF THE UNION GUEST
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) announced that Tammi Kromenaker, the Clinic Director of the Red River Women’s Clinic in Moorhead, MN, will be her guest at the President’s State of the Union Address on Thursday, March 7th in Washington, D.C. The Red River Women’s Clinic spent nearly 25 years in Fargo, where it was North Dakota’s sole abortion provider for most of that time. When the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade with the Dobbs decision in 2022, the Republican Governor of North Dakota enacted one of the most restrictive abortion bans in the country. To continue serving patients in desperate need of care, Kromenaker moved the clinic to the neighboring city of Moorhead in Minnesota, where abortion rights are protected under state law. “When North Dakota banned abortion statewide after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, Tammi Kromenaker sprang into action, moving Red River Women’s Clinic across the bridge from Fargo to Moorhead,” said Senator Smith. “Now, Minnesota is an island for abortion care in the Upper Midwest, and thousands of people in the region and across the country count on Red River Women’s Clinic for their health care. Every day, women walk through the doors of RRWC ready to make the best decisions for themselves and their families. And every day that freedom is under assault by the forces dedicated to a national abortion ban. The story of Tammi and her clinic represents the absolute chaos for Americans after the Supreme Court ruling, and her commitment to continuing to provide health care for women in a
U.S. Sen. Tina Smith Blasts Nation’s Top Consumer Protection Official For Pushing New Rule that Guts Needed Payday Lending Protections
WASHINGTON, D.C. [05/20/20] – U.S. Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn) has blasted the nation’s top consumer protection official for helping shepherd a new rule that will gut payday lending protections needed by financially-vulnerable Americans, saying the “corrupt” process used to develop the rule was badly tainted by the work of political appointees who manipulated economic data to get rid of current consumer protections. Sen. Smith, in a letter to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Kathleen Kraninger this week, called for an immediate halt to the current rulemaking process, and for an investigation into the serious improprieties uncovered about the process. The
U.S. Senators Smith & Shaheen, Ranking Members Wyden & Murray Release Senate Democrats’ Plan to Expand Health Care Coverage & Affordability During COVID-19
WASHINGTON, D.C. [05/22/20]—Today, U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) alongside Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-Wash.), released a Senate Democratic plan to expand health care coverage and affordability during the COVID-19 pandemic. In a white paper, the senators outline a series of common sense legislative priorities that the Senate should take up immediately, including expanding premium support through subsidies and tax credits, incentivizing Medicaid expansion in hold-out states, and a special open enrollment period. Their proposal also calls for all COVID-19 treatment costs to
U.S. Senators Smith, Klobuchar, Bennet & Murphy to Senate Leaders: Children’s Hospitals and Health Providers Need Urgent Help to Survive Pandemic
WASHINGTON, D.C. [05/22/20]—U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) told Senate leaders that hospitals serving children cannot continue to sustain the expected $10 billion in losses in the next several months and they pressed Senate leaders to include relief specifically for children’s hospitals and pediatric health care providers in the next COVID-19 relief package. Starting in January, children’s hospitals sustained deep revenue losses when they paused non-urgent and elective surgeries to help free up capacity for COVID-19 cases. At the same time, their costs for additional personal protective equipment (PPE), testing and
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Leads Senate Push to Improve Gaps in Telehealth Coverage for Mental and Physical Health
WASHINGTON, D.C. [05/15/20]—Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) led her Senate colleagues in introducing the Health Care at Home Act, which would provide telehealth parity for mental and physical health services. She was joined in the effort by Sens. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Mark Udall (D-N.M.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Ed Markey (D-Mass.). The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has led to a significant increase in telehealth services for both physical and behavioral health. In Minnesota, health systems have witnessed an over 1,000-fold increase in the use of telehealth. But gaps in access to telehealth remain. Sens.
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