Media

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03) sent a letter to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Sonny Perdue raising concerns that the Department is concealing internal estimates regarding the impact of its proposed changes to eligibility for food assistance. The letter asks USDA to immediately make public its estimate that more than 500,000 low-income students would lose automatic eligibility for free school meals under its proposed Revision of Categorical Eligibility in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The administration’s proposed rule – released July 23 – would make changes that restrict SNAP eligibility, which is used to calculate categorical eligibility for free and reduced school meals.

NEWPORT NEWS, VA – Congressman Bobby Scott issued the following statement on the passing of former Norfolk State University president Dr. Harrison B. Wilson: “I was saddened to learn of the passing of Dr. Harrison B. Wilson. He was a renowned basketball coach, educator, and long-time president of Norfolk State University. His tenure at NSU was marked by significant growth and his passion for excellence helped increase the university’s stature as a premier institution of higher education in Virginia. My thoughts and prayers are with his wife, Dr. Lucy Wilson, his children, grandchildren, and the countless students positively impacted by his life and work.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the House of Representatives passed H.R. 3877, the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2019, which prevents draconian, across-the-board spending cuts scheduled for FY2020 and FY2021. It also suspends the debt ceiling for the next two years. “Eight years ago, congressional Republicans almost brought our country to the brink of fiscal calamity by playing a dangerous game of chicken with our nation’s debt ceiling.

WASHINGTON, DC – Within the first two weeks of re-entry, individuals released from correctional facilities are 129 times more likely to die from an opioid overdose than the general population. To help ensure that individuals can access the care they need, Senators Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), and Congressman Bobby Scott (VA-03) reintroduced the Supporting Positive Outcomes After Release Act. This legislation would prohibit states from terminating an inmate’s Medicaid coverage while they are incarcerated, a practice that often prevents individuals from accessing treatment in the critical days and weeks after release. Instead, states would be required to suspend Medicaid coverage, ensuring access to health care services more quickly upon release. Sixteen states and the District of Columbia routinely terminate coverage for a Medicaid patient upon incarceration or detention. The result of termination is that upon discharge, individuals need to reapply for Medicaid in order to access health care services – a process that may take up to 45 to 90 days.

WASHINGTON, DC – Top House Democrats filed an amicus brief in federal court this week opposing the Trump administration’s unlawful expansion of association health plans (AHPs), which purposefully circumvents key consumer protections in the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The brief was filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for District of Columbia Circuit, which is hearing the administration’s appeal of a district court ruling that the administration’s attempt to expand is unlawful. In the brief, the Democratic leaders argue that the Trump administration’s effort to expand AHPs is antithetical to the text, structure, and history of the Affordable Care Act and undermines congressional intent.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Education and Labor Committee Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03) and Subcommittee on Workforce Protections Chairwoman Alma Adams (NC-12), introduced the Black Lung Benefits Disability Trust Fund Solvency Act of 2019 (H.R. 3876). This legislation would extend the black lung excise tax, which expired at the end of last year, to fund future benefits and health care for miners suffering from black lung disease. Without revenue from the tax, the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund is at-risk of becoming insolvent at a time when the number of black lung cases is rapidly increasing. A May 2018 GAO report found that failure to extend the tax rate will increase the Fund’s debt from approximately $5 billion to $15 billion by 2050.

WASHINGTON, DC – Following the announcement of a proposed rule this morning from the U.S. Department of Agriculture that would eliminate broad-based categorical eligibility for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, the Chairmen of the House Committees on Education and Labor, Ways and Means, and Agriculture issued statements on the potential of the rule to keep millions of Americans from the temporary food assistance they need. “Despite clear evidence that nutrition is critical to a child’s health and development, the administration’s proposed rule would jeopardize access to free school meals for more than 500,000 low-income children.”

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Bobby Scott (VA-03), chairman of the House Committee on Education and Labor, sent a letter to Department of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos expressing deep concern over the Department’s role in the abrupt closure of Dream Center Education Holdings—a recently defunct, for-profit higher education company. The letter details newly obtained documents suggesting that the Department of Education enabled Dream Center to mislead students regarding the accreditation status of two Dream Center-owned schools. The documents also reveal that despite knowledge of Dream Center’s false claims of accreditation, the Department did not immediately require the for-profit company to take corrective action. Instead, the Department supported efforts to retroactively accredit the institutions in question by rewriting Department policy.