PHILADELPHIA — The head of the Congressional Progressive Caucus is proposing a potential resolution to the impasse over billions of dollars in new pandemic relief the White House deems crucial: Make all 50 states cover the cost.
“That could have been one solution,” Rep. Pramila JayapalPramila JayapalHouse passes sweeping .5 trillion omnibus spending bill House panel refers Amazon to DOJ for potential obstruction of justice ‘Urgent’ COVID-19 funding hangs in balance amid partisan fight MORE (D-Wash.) told reporters during the the Democrats’ annual retreat here. “That’s not what happened.”
Jayapal was among the dozens of Democrats up in arms Wednesday morning when party leaders introduced a massive $1.5 trillion government spending package, including $13.6 billion in emergency funding for Ukraine and another $15.6 billion to address the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
The lawmakers’ frustration was not with those figures, but the decision to cover roughly $7 billion of the health care costs by clawing back money previously allotted to states as part of the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package that President BidenJoe BidenHouse passes bill banning Russian oil imports, authorizing sanctions White House congratulates South Korea’s new president, citing ‘ironclad’ alliance Expected rent spike adds to record inflation MORE signed into law a year ago.
Not every state was asked to chip in; only the roughly 30 states that were scheduled to receive their emergency funds in two blocks, rather than one. In that sense it was not “unspent” funding; it had simply not yet been delivered, Jayapal said.
“That is not unspent money; that is money that all of our states have been back-filling and counting on,” she said, noting that the first U.S. case of COVID-19 was discovered in Washington. “We had to put our entire health apparatus into gear without any assistance. And so we backfilled a lot of the money, expecting that we would get it.”
Jayapal said that design would have blown a “$440 million hole” in the budget of her home state. She’d joined other affected Democrats, including those from Minnesota and Michigan, in meeting with Speaker Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiHouse passes bill banning Russian oil imports, authorizing sanctions White House warns of ‘severe’ hit to COVID-19 response after funding dropped Overnight Health Care — COVID-19 funding in limbo MORE (D-Calif.) Wednesday morning to voice their agitation — and threaten to sink the …….
