This past week, AIDS United and more than 90 other HIV and
LGBTQ+ organizations sent
a letter to Congress outlining the steps that we believe they need to take
in order to ensure the health and safety of people living with HIV during the novel
coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak in the United States. In this document, we called
on federal decisionmakers to acknowledge the increased risk of COVID-19
illness and death faced by many people living with HIV and to craft a relief
package that takes the unique needs of this population into account. At the
same time, we advocated for a coronavirus response that not only benefited
people living with and affected by HIV, but all people living in the United
States—regardless of immigration status—who are heightened risk of serious
complications from COVID-19, particularly older adults and those living with chronic
health conditions.
As part of our broader ask, we called on Congress to enact H.R.
6201, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act. This relief package, which
passed by the House of Representatives last Saturday, would have included: free
coronavirus testing for everyone who needs a test, including the uninsured;
paid emergency leave with both 14 days of paid sick leave and up to three
months of paid family and medical leave; enhanced unemployment insurance;
strengthened food security initiatives; increased federal funds for Medicaid;
and clear protections for frontline workers, including health care workers and
other workers who are in contact with those who have been exposed or are
responsible for cleaning at-risk places.
By Wednesday evening, the Senate had passed, and the
President had signed into law, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act.
However, in the days since the House passed their version, the law had been significantly
pared back, with the benefits outlined within it reduced both in size and
scope. In the end, the passed version of the Families First Coronavirus
Response Act provided paid sick days to only about half of America’s workforce
and included a number of carve outs for both big and small businesses, with the
guarantee for paid sick leave to workers diagnosed with or in quarantine for
COVID-19 only applying to business with between 50 and 499 employees. As a
result, The
Washington Post estimates that only 12% of workers at “essential
businesses” like grocery stores and pharmacies that will be expected to stay
open during the outbreak will be guaranteed coverage by the bill. The final
bill also eliminated all extended paid family and medical leave for personal
illness and family care, only
keeping in the original extended leave provisions around wage replacement for
parents facing extended children’s school or child care closures.
When it comes to coronavirus relief packages, the devil is
truly in the details. It is easy for many people living with and affected by
HIV to see headlines about Congress providing over $100 billion in sick leave
and other benefits in response to COVID-19 and assume that it applies to them.
It’s only after folks make their way down to the fine print that they find out
that said $100 billion doesn’t cover them if they work for Walmart or Safeway
or your average small business.
The importance of not just looking at the top line numbers
is particularly high when it comes to the next coronavirus package being
considered by The White House and Congress. On Thursday evening, Senate
Republicans released a roughly $1 trillion coronavirus economic stimulus
package that would focus money on support for small businesses, direct cash
payments to individuals, loans to industries impacted by the virus and
additional funding for the health care industry.
Among the four “pillars” of this plan, as Senate Majority
Leader Mitch McConnell has called them, the one getting the most attention is
the direct cash payments to individuals. The legislation would provide checks
of up to $1,200 for individuals making below $75,000, with an additional $500
provided for every child. However, these payments would be based on adjusted
gross income from 2018 and would vary based on whether or not they paid any
income tax. Individuals or families that did not earn enough to have any
federal income tax liability in 2018 would only
receive about $600 from the federal government, while middle class earners
who made below $75,000 but still had a high enough income to pay some federal
income tax would receive the full $1,200. The Senate GOP’s legislation would
also include $58 billion in loans for commercial and cargo airlines, as well as
$150 billion in loans for other “eligible businesses” that could include the
hotel and cruise industries.
In a
joint statement in response to the Senate GOP’s coronavirus economic
stimulus package, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck
Schumer committed to meeting the needs of workers and addressing health care
concerns around COVID-19. The statement
made mention of creating a new “Marshall Plan to rebuild our health care
infrastructure on a continental scale” and also emphasized Congressional
Democrats desire to put money “directly into the hands of those who need it
most.”
AIDS United will continue to monitor the federal response to
COVID-19 in addition to our standard coverage of the annual Congressional
budget and appropriations processes. Please check back frequently with AIDS
United’s Policy Update for all the latest information.
Posted By: AIDS United, Policy Department - Friday, March 20, 2020
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