News Coverage
CNBC: Democratic senators grill U.S. health officials on Trump interference in coronavirus vaccine process
by Berkeley Lovelace Jr. and Will Feuer
Democratic senators on Wednesday grilled U.S. health officials about whether President Donald Trump is interfering in the development of potential coronavirus vaccines. National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Francis Collins and U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams testified before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions on vaccine safety as infectious disease experts and scientists in recent weeks have said they worry the vaccine approval process in the U.S. could be … Continue Reading
September 09, 2020
The Washington Post: Patients may have seen ‘significant’ delays in medicine deliveries by USPS, Senate report finds
by Tony Romm
Patients who rely on the U.S. Postal Service for their prescription drugs may have experienced “significant” delays in their deliveries, according to a Senate report released Wednesday, which accused Postmaster General Louis DeJoy of jeopardizing the “health of millions of Americans.”Several major U.S. pharmacies told the two Democratic senators leading the investigation — Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) and Robert P. Casey Jr. (Pa.) — that average delivery times have ticked up since the spring, … Continue Reading
September 04, 2020
Fort Hood Soldier Deaths: Markey, Warren Call For Senate Hearing On ‘Holding The Army Accountable’
WASHINGTON (CBS/AP) — Senators Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts are calling for a Senate hearing on the “series of tragic deaths of soldiers” from Fort Hood in Texas. They and Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas wrote a letter to the Armed Services Committee, seeking to make sure that Congress is “holding the Army accountable.”Sgt. Elder Fernandes, of Brockton, disappeared from the base in August and was later found dead. Investigators do not suspect foul play, but the family … Continue Reading
September 03, 2020
Exclusive: Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Reps. Ayanna Pressley, Barbara Lee Unveil Historic Legislation Confronting Public Health Impact of Structural Racism
by Anne Branigin
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) and Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) announced on Thursday a new plan that would declare racism a public health issue. Dubbed “the Anti-Racism in Public Health Act of 2020,” the legislation is the first of its kind and would harness the power of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to research health disparities and propose antiracist policies to eradicate racial divides in health outcomes.The bill also builds upon a growing … Continue Reading
September 02, 2020
Sen. Elizabeth Warren: Trump’s ‘Buy American’ executive order for essential medicines doesn’t go far enough
by Stephanie Dhue
The coronavirus pandemic has put the spotlight on the United States’ reliance on foreign countries for key pharmaceutical products.President Donald Trump signed an executive order last month that directs the Food and Drug Administration to create a list of essential medicines and calls on the Pentagon and Department of Veterans Affairs to buy critical pharmaceuticals from domestic suppliers.“We cannot rely on China and other nations across the globe that could one day deny us products in a … Continue Reading
August 27, 2020
Sens. Warren, Smith press major labs over coronavirus testing delays as flu season approaches
by Will Feuer
Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Tina Smith pressed five of the nation’s largest testing labs over delays in processing coronavirus tests as the flu season approaches.Labs across the country have struggled to keep pace with the rapid rise of coronavirus cases earlier this summer, leading to long lines at testing centers and turnaround times of more than a week for some patients. Billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates said that long turnaround times render coronavirus tests a “complete waste” because … Continue Reading
August 26, 2020
Elizabeth Warren calls for investigation into Trump’s politicization of Covid-19
by Anna North
President Trump has made every aspect of his response to Covid-19 political, from his resistance to mask-wearing to his insistence on reopening schools to his sparring with Democratic governors over lifesaving tests and personal protective equipment.His administration has even been accused of scrapping a nationwide testing plan after a team convened by Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner determined that the epidemic would hit blue states the hardest and Democratic governors could be blamed for … Continue Reading
August 25, 2020
EPA Faces New Scrutiny Over Decision To Stop Enforcing Pollution Laws Amid Pandemic
by Alexander C. Kaufman
The Environmental Protection Agency is facing new scrutiny of its decision to stop enforcing pollution rules amid the pandemic, escalating a fight over what critics see as one of the most egregious parts of the administration’s response to the coronavirus ahead of the November election.In a letter sent Monday to EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler, Massachusetts Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D) and Ed Markey (D) accused the agency of providing “all but meaningless” responses to earlier questions about … Continue Reading
August 25, 2020
Elizabeth Warren, others seek details of Warp Speed co-chief Moncef Slaoui’s contract
by Christopher Rowland
Democrats on Capitol Hill have asked an Alexandria consulting company for details about an unusual contract that has allowed the chief scientific adviser to President Trump’s Operation Warp Speed to maintain personal investments and avoid making ethics disclosures of his holdings in pharmaceutical companies.In a letter Monday to Advanced Decision Vectors, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and two other lawmakers are asking the firm to explain its role in providing drug company executive Moncef … Continue Reading
August 25, 2020
Warren And Markey Demand Transparency Over FDA Decision To Authorize Plasma Treatment
by Sanjana Karanth
Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey are demanding the U.S. Food and Drug Administration provide all communications between the agency and the White House to determine whether the recent emergency use authorization of convalescent plasma treatment for coronavirus patients was politically motivated.In a letter to the agency obtained by HuffPost on Tuesday, the Massachusetts Democrats called the FDA’s authorization decision “troubling,” given limited evidence of the treatment’s effectiveness on … Continue Reading
August 24, 2020
Elizabeth Warren Demands Post Office Board Members Release Financial Disclosures
by AJ Vicens
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, already under fire for his operational changes, will testify before the House Oversight Committee today, two days after an appearance before a Senate panel where he said he had no intention of restoring mail sorting machines that had been removed and admitted that the changes he’s made have delayed the mail which has, as one Senator put it, “hurt people.”Testifying alongside DeJoy will be Robert Duncan, the chairman of the US Postal Service Board of Governors, … Continue Reading
August 21, 2020
Warren calls for Postal Service board members to fire DeJoy or resign
by Tax Axelrod
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said board members for the U.S. Postal Service should fire Postmaster General Louis DeJoy or resign themselves amid controversy over planned changes he’s announced.“The @USPS Board of Governors has a responsibility to serve the public interest. That means delivering the mail on time - not acting as accomplices for the Postmaster General’s partisan sabotage. If the Board won’t fire Louis DeJoy and reverse the damage, they should resign too,” Warren tweeted … Continue Reading
August 20, 2020
Sen. Elizabeth Warren calls Kodak loan decision a ‘fiasco,’ urges new investigation
by Thomas Franck
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Thursday blasted the Trump administration’s decision to offer, and then back away from, a multimillion-dollar loan to Eastman Kodak as a “fiasco.”In a letter viewed by CNBC, the Massachusetts Democrat urged the federal oversight board tasked with monitoring how Covid-19 relief funding is spent to examine the decision-making behind what was expected to be a $765 million loan to the Rochester, N.Y.-based Kodak....Read the full article on the CNBC … Continue Reading
August 20, 2020
Senate Democrats investigating whether USPS changes held up prescription drug deliveries
by Tony Romm
Two top Senate Democrats are opening their own investigation of the U.S. Postal Service, aiming to explore whether changes to mail processing and delivery have prevented seniors, veterans and other patients from receiving their prescription drugs on time.The new inquiry is the work of Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Robert P. Casey Jr. (D-Pa.), who issued a battery of letters to CVS, Walgreens and other top providers on Thursday to determine whether their customers had experienced delays … Continue Reading
August 17, 2020
Senate Democrats call on USPS governing board to undo mail changes — and remove DeJoy if necessary
by Tony Romm
Top Senate Democrats have set their sights on the little-known board that oversees the U.S. Postal Service, urging it to undo the postmaster general’s controversial policies out of concern they have “endangered” Americans.The call for action came Monday from Sen. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (N.Y.) and five other Democratic senators. They urged the Postal Service’s Board of Governors to rein in Postmaster General Louis DeJoy by canceling his recent … Continue Reading
August 17, 2020
Warren calls on McConnell to bring Senate back to address Postal Service
by Jordain Carney
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said Monday that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) should bring the Senate back into session amid criticism surrounding changes at the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) as the GOP leader faces growing calls to reconvene the chamber. “Good for [Speaker] Nancy Pelosi for bringing the House back. I believe Mitch McConnell needs to bring the Senate back as well," Warren told NBC's "Today." "People depend on the post office. We're depending on it for our … Continue Reading
August 14, 2020
Exclusive: Postal service inspector general reviewing DeJoy's policy changes and potential ethics conflicts
by Marshall Cohen and Kristen Holmes
Washington (CNN)The internal watchdog at the United States Postal Service is reviewing controversial policy changes recently imposed under Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, and is also examining DeJoy's compliance with federal ethics rules, according to a spokeswoman for the USPS inspector general and an aide to Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who requested the review.Lawmakers from both parties and postal union leaders have sounded alarms over disruptive changes instituted by DeJoy this summer, … Continue Reading
August 13, 2020
Sen. Elizabeth Warren demands ‘corruption’ probe after report of Amazon options purchase by Postal Service chief Louis DeJoy
by Dan Mangan
Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Thursday demanded that the U.S. Postal Service’s internal ethics watchdog investigate what she suggested was “corruption” in the purchase of Amazon stock options by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy after his appointment to that job.The Massachusetts Democrat Warren, in a tweet, wrote that DeJoy’s “investments in @USPS competitors were already deeply problematic.”...Read the full article on the CNBC … Continue Reading
August 13, 2020
Facebook tells Elizabeth Warren it has two different standards for climate fact-checking
by Justine Calma
Facebook says its third-party fact-checking partners “do review and rate climate misinformation, and there has never been a prohibition against them doing so,” in a response to criticism from Democratic senators. Facebook will continue its policy of exempting “clear opinion content” from fact-checking, the letter says. The senators are unsatisfied.In the response, which was shared exclusively with The Verge, the tech behemoth says it does not consider all climate change content “opinion.” But … Continue Reading
August 10, 2020
Democrats focus new legislation on the pandemic’s effect on maternal mortality
by Shefali Luthra
The emerging evidence suggests pregnant people are at enhanced risk of complications from COVID-19. Now, a group of Democrats are trying to plug holes in how the government tracks the virus’ impact on pregnancy, put new resources into maternal health and ensure that pregnant individuals are ultimately eligible for any new treatments and vaccines, according to a bill shared first with The 19th.The bill, unveiled Monday and spearheaded by Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Lauren Underwood, comes as … Continue Reading
