WASHINGTON, March 26, 2010 - Chuck Grassley has introduced legislation with Amy Klobuchar to help ensure veterans' medical facilities can adequately compete for qualified mental health professionals, doctors, dentists and nurses.

The legislation designates Department of Veterans Affairs medical facilities and state veterans' homes as Health Professional Shortage Areas which allows the facilities to compete for National Health Service Corps fellows.  The program makes student loan repayments to doctors, dentists, and mental health professionals who pledge to practice in a Health Professional Shortage Area for at least two years.

"Making sure our veterans get the care they need also means making sure that health care professionals are available to help them.  This legislation gives our veterans facilities an opportunity to tap into a network of providers ready and willing to support our men and women who fought for our freedom," Grassley said.

Veterans facilities that apply to be designated a Health Professional Shortage Area must show a need for additional health care professionals.  Once designated, the facilities compete with other eligible sites to hire the National Health Service Corps fellows.  The legislation does not allow National Health Service Corps fellows to simultaneously receive scholarship or loan repayment benefits from other VA employee programs.

Grassley said that as more and more Iraqi and Afghanistan veterans seek health care, the VA needs to be prepared to handle an increase in patients.  "This legislation provides another avenue for the VA to get the personnel it needs to help our wounded warriors," Grassley said.

Grassley has also been pressing the VA for answers about its claims backlog.  A recent case before the Supreme Court revealed that VA decisions to deny veterans benefit claims are not only being overturned at a high rate, but that in as many as 70 percent of the cases, the VA's position is not even substantially justified.  Grassley said that the fact that VA decisions are overturned with this kind of frequency, meaning they were wrongly decided in the first place, is an indication of serious, systemic problems with the way the VA considers the benefits claims made by veterans.

-30-

Includes Critical Medicare Reimbursement Language Secured by Braley

Washington, DC - Rep. Bruce Braley (D-Iowa) released the following statement today after voting to pass a package of fixes to the Senate Health Care Bill.  Saturday morning, Braley and a core group of other Representatives were able to achieve a major breakthrough in Medicare reimbursement policy that secured his vote for the bills.

"One of my biggest priorities has been fighting to fix unfair and inefficient geographic differences, and reform the Medicare system to one that pays Iowa's medical professionals for the high-quality, low-cost health care they currently provide. Early Saturday morning, we achieved a major breakthrough in reforming our Medicare reimbursement system.

"I'm proud to say that the House reconciliation package will finally fix these inequities, move us to a better reimbursement model that emphasizes quality over quantity, and help recruit well-qualified health-care providers to Iowa. These important changes will go above and beyond the Senate bill we passed Sunday, providing an immediate $800 million to address geographic disparities for both doctors and hospitals, as well as written guarantees from Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius for further action to reform Medicare reimbursement rates.

"This bill, paired with the Senate bill we passed on Sunday, will decrease health insurance costs, expand access to quality, affordable health care, improve reimbursements for Iowa medical providers and allow Americans to maintain their choice of health insurance. This legislation will provide much-needed relief for thousands of businesses in Iowa's First District and will reduce our deficit by more than $143 billion over the next 10 years and $1.2 trillion in the 10 years after that. After reading the bill, listening to my constituents and debating the bill's provisions in Congress, I'm convinced this legislation is good for Iowa."

# # #


Education reconciliation provisions increase college affordability


Washington, D.C. - Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) today released the following statement detailing the benefits Iowans stand to gain from the comprehensive health reform bill passed earlier this week: The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and The Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act, passed today by the U.S. Senate.  Once the reconciliation piece is approved by the U.S. House and signed into law by the President, Iowans will see a number of benefits illustrated below.  Earlier this week, the President signed The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act into law.  Harkin is Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

"The legislation passed by Congress this week looks to the future and means big things for Iowa's working families," said Harkin. "Comprehensive health reform eliminates the practice of denying coverage because of a pre-existing condition, lets kids stay on their parents insurance until age 26, provides tax relief for small businesses and provides a historic investment in prevention and wellness to change our current 'sick care system' into genuine health care.

"The second proposal, passed today by the Senate, builds on the strength of comprehensive reform and includes provisions that boost college affordability.  For Middle Class families, one of the biggest challenges comes when their children reach college age.  The questions around the kitchen table are:  How do we pay for college?  And, in a couple years, our child will be too old to stay on the family's health insurance plan; what are we going to do?" continued Harkin. "This bill addresses these challenges head-on.  It allows adult children to stay on their parents' health insurance plan until age 26.  And it increases the maximum Pell Grant for college students from $5,550 in 2010 to $5,975 by 2017.  Starting in 2013, the grant will be indexed to the Consumer Price Index for five years.  Make no mistake, there is a lot at stake for America's Middle Class families in this reconciliation bill - both in terms of health care security, and in terms of access to an affordable college education."

Key Benefits for Iowa in the Health Reform Legislation

  • Provide tax credits for up to 48,600 Iowa small businesses to help make coverage more affordable.
  • Health reform will ensure that the 302,000 uninsured Iowans and 171,000 Iowans who purchase health insurance through the individual market have access to affordable health insurance options through state-based health insurance exchanges.
  • Prohibit insurance companies from excluding coverage of pre-existing conditions for the 713,155 children in Iowa, starting this year.
  • Close the "donut hole" and improve other Medicare benefits for 505,000 Iowa seniors.
  • Each year, 89,700 Iowa seniors hit the Medicare Part D "donut hole."  Starting this year, seniors who hit this gap in their prescription drug coverage will receive a $250 check, and the "donut hole" will be completely closed by 2020.
  • Reduce family health insurance premiums by $1,350 - $1,930 for the same benefits, as compared to what they would be without health reform by 2016.
  • Starting this year, 300,466 young adults in Iowa will be able to remain covered by their parent's insurance policy until age 26.
  • Create 5,600 - 9,000 jobs by reducing health care costs for employers.
  • Provide more federal funding for 83 Community Health Centers in Iowa.
  • Health reform will provide immediate access to quality, affordable health insurance for as many as 33,497 uninsured Iowans who are unable to obtain health insurance because of a pre-existing condition.
Regional Surgicenter in Moline has now been honored as a quality endoscopy unit by the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE).  To receive such recognition, an endoscopy unit must demonstrate quality assurance, show proof of accreditation by a recognized accrediting body and complete an ASGE Recognition Course. The Regional Surgicenter is also accredited by the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care.

As of this time, only 167 endoscopy units have earned the ASGE's recognition throughout the United States.  Earning this recognition is an indication of the high quality of care found at Moline's Regional Surgicenter.

"We are honored to be recognized by ASGE for our efforts to enhance quality and safety in our Surgicenter," said Dr. Rao Movva, President and Medical Director of the Regional Surgicenter and Gastroenterology Consultants, S.C.

The ASGE Endoscopy Unit Recognition Program honors endoscopy units that follow the ASGE guidelines on specialized training, quality assurance, and CDC (Centers for Disease Control) infection control guidelines, as well as completing the training on prin-ciples in quality and safety in endoscopy.

The Regional Surgicenter is an outpatient Ambulatory Surgery Center, providing Gastrointestional endoscopy and related procedures, and also provides multi-specialty surgical procedures.

WASHINGTON - (March 23, 2010) - Senator Chuck Grassley said today that he will offer an amendment for rural health care equity during Senate debate on the health-care reconciliation bill. Grassley said at issue is how Medicare calculates payments to physicians and unfairly penalizes rural doctors, making it increasingly difficult for rural Medicare beneficiaries to find a doctor.

Grassley said his amendment this week would repeal the special deal for five selected frontier states that became law today when the President signed health-care reform legislation. The higher payments given to these five states, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming and Utah, come at the expense of every other state and will make it more difficult to secure passage of formula changes to achieve equity for rural states nationwide. The Grassley amendment would improve physician payments for all rural states, not a selected few.

Grassley said his amendment to the reconciliation bill also would make clear that a side agreement reported over the weekend between House members and the Secretary of Health and Human Services for an Institute of Medicine study about geographic disparity cannot interfere with the clear-cut improvement made during Senate debate on the health care bill to improve the accuracy of the data the government uses to factor in physician practice costs in determining Medicare payments. Last September, the Finance Committee adopted a Grassley amendment to make this change. The Senate proposal was much stronger than the health care bill in the House of Representatives because the House bill only had a study to make recommendations.  It didn't make actual improvements to the status quo for rural providers.

"I want to make sure the agreement with Secretary Sebelius that somehow accompanies the House health-care reconciliation bill, cannot un-do the actual formula fix established by the Grassley amendment in the health-care reform bill to secure more equitable payment for doctors serving Medicare beneficiaries in rural areas," Grassley said.

The Grassley amendment that's part of the health-care reform that became law today tells Medicare officials to use accurate data. Grassley said his concern is "if the House reconciliation bill results in the Institute of Medicine coming up with different data and makes recommendations that aren't consistent with the requirements for the practice-expense geographic adjustments that are now law, we could be back where we started, or worse off. It's  unclear what was agreed to between Secretary Sebelius and the House, and what the advantage is for rural health care equity for physicians, so anything could happen."

The senator said that another concern is that descriptions of the study promised by the Secretary of Health and Human Services say it would be part of the work of the new Independent Payment Advisory Board.  "The purpose of that Board is to cut Medicare spending, which likely will not result in improvements for rural areas," Grassley said.

"I hope senators don't let politics get in the way of making sure these important policies are established in a way that is equitable and fair. These formulas determine how well Medicare works, or doesn't work, for beneficiaries in rural states," Grassley said.

Separately, the health-care reconciliation bill passed by the House and pending in the Senate also raises questions by creating a new reimbursement cliff for doctors in Medicaid, on top of the physician payment formula problem that exists already in Medicare. "As bad as the physician payment problem is in Medicare, House members now have set up the same kind of problem in Medicaid. The health care reform bill puts another 16 million Americans in Medicaid, so Medicaid's problems will get even bigger. That's a disservice to beneficiaries in both programs," Grassley said.

###

SEN. CHARLES E. GRASSLEY, R-IOWA, HOLDS A NEWS TELECONFERENCE

MARCH 23, 2010

GRASSLEY:  Tomorrow, our Agriculture Committee is going to start consideration of what's called the child nutrition bill.  This bill is a -- is going to bring into consideration a number of improvements and heavy investment in programs that gives kids healthier meals and learn more nutritious habits.  Some of the improvements that are expected in the bill, changes in current law include making science-based nutrition standards based on dietary guidelines for all foods sold in the schools.  It encourages wellness, physical activity at child care centers, a nice improvement to help get kids off of the couch and actively take part in their own health.  And the bill would give the first increase in reimbursement rates to schools in more than 30 years.  There are some concerns about using EQIP money as an offset to pay for nearly half the bill.  Some will argue that not all the EQIP dollars were spent last year, but the problem with that argument is that the funds are lost from the baseline for the 2012 farm bill yet to be negotiated.  I look forward to seeing amendments offered in committee to improve the bill without increasing the deficit.

Tom Rider?

QUESTION:  Good morning, Senator.  Senator, I was visiting with the Iowa cattlemen.  They're quite concerned about that EQIP money.  Will you be offering any amendments yourself to try to restore that funding?

GRASSLEY:  I don't -- I haven't reached a decision on that yet, but my guess is that I probably would not, but I think that others are, and then I've got to look at what they substitute as a source of revenue on that point to whether or not it'd be EQIP or other dollars.

Tom Steever?

QUESTION:  Good morning, Senator.  Even though the House-passed version of health care came on Sunday, there is still some more work to be done in the Senate on health care.  What -- do you see any problems coming up with -- with that?

GRASSLEY:  Well, I hope there's a lot of problems coming up with it, because I don't support the bill.  You know, I voted -- the bill the president's going to sign today I voted against just before Christmas.   Now, this reconciliation bill is supposedly changing some things in that bill that got it enough votes so the bill the president's signing could pass the House.  And so I don't see things in this bill changing my mind and probably would vote against it, but I intend to offer some amendments.  One amendment I would offer is that this bill, the president's a very strong proponent of it, but he's not covered by it.  So I'm going to offer an amendment that the president, cabinet members, not executive branch civil servants, but political appointees and their staff and the president, the White House be covered by it.  And that's a follow-on to my amendment that I got adopted in the Finance Committee that will be in the bill the president's signing this morning that members of Congress and their staff get their health care insurance through the exchange.  It should be the same for the president.  The president thinks this is such a good program, then shouldn't he get his health care the same way that members of Congress would get their health care under this bill, through the exchange?  I just think it's -- that's one of the things.  Then there are some things on rural health care and reimbursement for low reimbursement states that I'm going to be offering amendments on, as well.  And naturally, I hope that these amendments carry, and that's why they're being offered.

Bob Quinn?  Dan Skelton?

QUESTION:  Good morning, Senator.  The administration has become more active on trade.  We've seen the deals with Russia on pork and China on pork in recent weeks.  Can you give us an update?  What's the status of Isi Siddiqui as chief ag negotiator?  Is there any movement on that nomination?

GRASSLEY:  No.  And there isn't.  It's being held up.  But I can tell you this, that a real litmus test of the president moving on trade ought to be judged from the standpoint, is he pushing Colombia, Panama, and South Korea?  Those are all negotiated.  They're all under fast track.  That's a real litmus test.  Now, I know he's put out a lot of other things.  And I don't oppose what the president wants to do in these other areas, including what you just give him credit for accomplishing, but a real test of the seriousness of this administration ought to be -- the benchmark ought to be Panama, Colombia, and South Korea.  Until I see those being pushed by this administration -- and I'm going to help them -- I have serious doubts about whether or not they ought to be given much credit for pushing trade.

Stacia?  Gary, Arkansas?

QUESTION:  Senator, first, I would like to go back, again, to the Child Nutrition Act and EQIP.  Why isn't all the EQIP money being spent?

GRASSLEY:  I would only guess that it's getting approval.  I wouldn't say that there's not enough applications.  But -- but it's -- it's crimped by appropriations.

QUESTION:  My theory has always been that, in particular, Stenholm and Combest had sought a large amount of EQIP money because they feared EPA was going to clam down on large livestock operations.  This would have been, you know, 2002.  EPA didn't do that, and the EQIP money wasn't needed.  Do you see any -- any reason to believe that?

GRASSLEY:  Well, that may be the reason, but you can't count on this EPA in this administration, not in the future, being tough on -- on any livestock operation, large or small, and -- and so consequently, the need for more EQIP money.

QUESTION:  OK.

GRASSLEY:  Jean?  Oh, go ahead.

QUESTION:  I also wanted to ask about climate change, because you're hearing talk that the three senators working on a compromise proposal may release it by the end of the month.  Are there any items in it that you find appealing?

GRASSLEY:  I will wait until it's released and then answer your question at that time.  But if you -- if it is released and you anticipate a question like that down the road here, after we get back from spring break, let my staff know so I'm prepared to answer it for you, because I -- I do want to be able to answer that for you.

QUESTION:  OK.  Do you see any likelihood that any climate legislation...

GRASSLEY:  No.

QUESTION:  ... may pass this year?

GRASSLEY:  No.

QUESTION:  Thank you.

GRASSLEY:  And, obviously, that's what I hope for, Gary.

Jean, Agrinews?  Matt Wilde, Waterloo Courier?

QUESTION:  Morning, Senator.  I have a question dealing with flooding issues and farm policy.  In northeast Iowa, we've endured two major floods in 15 years.  And the Cedar River and other waterways, as you know, are out of their banks again (ph).  Some people believe that modern grain production, farm policy, and intensive tiling of farm ground is to blame or partly -- or mostly to blame for floods.  It's suggested to me that the government payments force farmers to predominantly raise corn and beans, which don't exactly help hold back the water, and -- and then, of course, we don't have the native grasses like we used to have.  So are lawmakers in Washington concerned about this?  Is that -- is ag policy partly to blame?  And what can be done to change this?

GRASSLEY:  I don't policy-makers in Washington are concerned about that for the most part.  And to some extent, not necessarily just answering the hypotheticals that you bring up, but I would have to say that any government program, whether it's a farm program or some other program, whether it's an expenditure or which you could call a subsidy or whether it's a tax incentive, they -- they do tend to influence the marketplace.  Some of them are meant to influence the marketplace.  Most cases are meant to influence it positively.  In -- in -- in the case of agricultural programs, I would say that -- that I doubt if you would say the northern half of Iowa that this would apply to, but I think in the 1960s, '70s and the '80s, you had a lot of grassland that would be better used for cow calf operations in southern Iowa, probably plowed up because of the incentives of the farm program.  But I believe that -- that the extent to which the concept of a safety net for agriculture is very important.  And by safety net, I mean just a minimum amount to get people, farmers over humps that are beyond their control, like natural disaster, international politics, you know, war, a lot of things that affect farming, that the farmer has no control over, that -- that we have a safety net to protect those farmers from catastrophic drops (ph) in prices beyond their own control.  But the extent to which farm programs have gone beyond that and helped a very small percentage of the farmers that maybe don't need subsidy because of high income and big operations, they can get over these humps themselves.  It has subsidized them to get bigger.  But except for within the -- then getting back to within the concept of a safety net for small- or medium-sized farmers, I think that -- that you can't take these considerations that cause your -- your question to be raised very seriously because what we're talking about is a farm program to maintain the continuity of food supply.  And -- and that's done for two reasons, one, for the national security of our country, and the other one is for the social cohesion of our society, because you've got to have food for your military, and Germany and Japan learned in World War II they didn't have enough food, so that's why they protect their farmers to a great extent.  The United States ought to learn that lesson.  And then social cohesion.  You know the old saying, you're only nine meals away from a revolution.  So if we don't have a stable food supply, we'd have a more chaotic society.  So those two considerations have to override the issues that you brought up.

QUESTION:  OK.

GRASSLEY:  Are you plowing up -- are we growing too much grain?  I'll bet some of these very people that raise those questions would be the first to cry out that if we didn't have enough food when they go to the supermarket.

QUESTION:  OK.  Thank you, Senator.

GRASSLEY:  All right.  Hey, I see Ken Root down here.  Ken, are you on there?

QUESTION:  Yes, but nothing to get excited about, sir.  I'm not on the air until next week on WHO-TV, so I'm just monitoring this week, but I want you to be prepared for a question next week, sir.

GRASSLEY:  Well -- well, I'll be prepared.  You bet.

QUESTION:  OK.  And I may have the WHO people ask it to you again on the television piece that you do.  Don't you do that at 1 o'clock on the same day?

GRASSLEY:  Yes, I do.  I do.

QUESTION:  OK, so sharpen up your -- you know, your wit, if you wouldn't mind, sir.

GRASSLEY:  Well, I welcome you back.

QUESTION:  Well, thank you very much.

GRASSLEY:  And just in case the rest of you people didn't know Ken Root was still alive, he's alive.  OK.  Anybody else want to jump in?  OK.  Thank you all very much.

QUESTION:  Thank you, Senator.

END


National menu labeling effort will also take effect soon


WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) today issued the following statement after President Obama signed into law The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the Senate-passed comprehensive health reform measure approved by the House earlier this week.  Harkin, as Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, was on hand at the White House to witness the bill signing.

"It's been a long debate and a hard-fought battle, but today, the hundred year struggle to provide affordable, quality health care coverage is over.  In signing this bill into law, President Obama today rewrote history, and in doing so, made access to health care available to millions of Americans. I've been on hand for a number of White House bill signings, but witnessing this particular event has been one of the most poignant of my career," said Harkin.

"I am most encouraged that with this reform, we will begin to recreate America as a genuine wellness society - a society focused on healthful lifestyles and preventing the chronic diseases that take such a toll on our bodies and our budgets.  And make no mistake, this bill doesn't just tinker around the edges; it changes the paradigm."

The Prevention and Public Health title of The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act creates incentives to prevent chronic disease and rein in costs across the full health care spectrum.  At the federal level, creating a new inter-agency council to develop a national health strategy, creating a dedicated funding stream to support these efforts; at the clinical level with doctor training and coverage of preventive services and the elimination of co-pays and deductibles for these services; and at the grassroots level with grants for community initiatives that will support more walkable communities, healthier schools and increased access to nutritious foods in safe environments.

The legislation also includes a bipartisan compromise brokered by Harkin and others to provide mandatory disclosure of calories on menus and menu boards to help reduce rising obesity rates by enabling Americans to make healthier food choices.  The compromise combines key elements of the Menu Education and Labeling (MEAL) Act, sponsored by Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) and the Labeling Education and Nutrition (LEAN) Act, sponsored by Senators Tom Carper (D-DE) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK). 

"A critical component of the just passed federal menu labeling is that the nutrition information is right on the menu or menu board next to the name of the menu item, rather than in a pamphlet or in tiny print on a poster, so that consumers can see it when they are making ordering decisions," concluded Harkin.  "It's a common-sense approach that's also a step toward good public health."

Prevention and wellness provisions of the The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will:

  • Provide $15 billion in mandatory spending to support prevention and wellness activities.
  • Eliminate cost sharing on recommended preventive services delivered by Medicare and all insurance plans available in the Health Insurance Exchange.
  • Support two independent, advisory task forces ? the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) and the Task Force on Community Preventive Services (TFCPS) ? to strengthen and coordinate these bodies' efforts to conduct rigorous, systematic reviews of existing science and recommend the adoption of proven and effective services.
  • Support investments in the science of prevention to further expand the base of information available for evaluation by the task forces.
  • Provide coverage under Medicare, with no co-payment or deductible, for an annual wellness visit that includes a comprehensive health risk assessment and a 5-10 year personalized prevention plan.
  • Deliver clinical preventive services by  covering 100% of the cost of USPSTF-recommended preventive services for Medicare beneficiaries, providing enhanced federal Medicaid matching funds to states who offer USPSTF-recommended services, requiring coverage of tobacco cessation services for pregnant women in Medicaid and by making clinical preventive services a required benefit of insurance available in the Health Insurance Exchange.
  • Deliver community preventive services by investing in state, territorial and local public health infrastructure and by providing grants to implement recommended services.
  • Require chain restaurants to put calorie counts directly on their menus and to make other nutritional information available so that consumers can make informed choices about what they eat.
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) commented today on the findings of a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report he requested on the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act of 2000 (EEOICPA).  The EEOICPA provides compensation to workers and their survivors for occupational diseases arising from toxic and radiation exposure in the government's nuclear weapons program.  Several Iowans who worked on the Department of Energy's Line 1 are currently pursuing claims with the Department of Labor (DOL) through the EEOICPA. 

"I requested an audit of this program after constituents reported delayed compensation, difficulty navigating the program and inconsistencies with the adjudication process," Senator Harkin said. "Some claimants had to wait three years just for the government to rule on their case, and that's unacceptable.  The recommendations the GAO makes in this report will help the DOL be more responsive to affected workers, and I am currently looking at the best way to implement these fixes."

Three agencies coordinate efforts to implement the EEOICPA: The DOL issues compensation payments and determines whether workers should be compensated for exposure to toxic substances; the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) estimates workers' exposure to radiation for purposes of compensation decisions and determines when workers should receive presumptive compensation without need for a radiation dose estimate; and the Department of Energy (DOE) provides records and historical information used by both NIOSH and the DOL under their authorities.

In its report, the GAO noted that Congress has established a Presidential Advisory Board on Radiation and Worker Health which regularly evaluates the quality and scientific soundness of radiation dose assessments, site profiles, and presumptive compensation evaluations that are conducted by NIOSH.  However, there is a "gap" because there is no comparable body to oversee the "quality, objectivity and consistency of [DOL] consultant physicians' work and no independent expert review of the scientific soundness of the detailed information in site exposure" matrices used in screening cases for compensability.

The GAO also found that while Congress established a DOL Ombudsman to assist claimants and to report on problems encountered by claimants through annual reports to Congress, "Labor has not publically responded to these concerns, nor developed formal plans for addressing the issues." As a result, "claimants have little knowledge that their concerns are heard or that they are being addressed."

GAO also noted that the Labor Department does not release its site exposure matrices due to concerns about releasing national security sensitive information.  By comparison, NIOSH has released extensive documentation on radiological conditions at nuclear facilities. GAO found that transparency would facilitate greater understanding on the part of claimants, and help improve the accuracy of the site exposure matrix used in decision making.  GAO recommended that DOL and DOE establish a "formal action plan" to facilitate a clearance process to make information on the site matrices public.

A full copy of the report GAO #10-302 can be found here: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d10302.pdf.
WASHINGTON - Monday, March 22, 2010 - Senator Chuck Grassley today said he will offer an amendment during Senate debate on the health care reconciliation bill this week to apply the reform legislation to the President, Vice President, cabinet members and top White House staff.

"It's pretty unbelieveable that the President and his closest advisors remain untouched by the reforms they pushed for the rest of the country.  In other words, President Obama's health care reform won't apply to President Obama," Grassley said.  "Last December, the effort to apply any new law to administration political leaders was rejected by the Senate Majority Leader.  But there's no justification for the double standard, and I'll continue to work to establish fairness."

The Senate legislation passed last night by the House of Representatives includes an amendment Grassley sponsored and got adopted by the Finance Committee last fall to have members of Congress and their staffs get their health insurance through the same health insurance exchanges where health plans for the general public would be available.  During the closed-door negotiations on the bill late last year, the Senate Majority Leader carved out Senate committee and leadership staff from this requirement.

Subsequently, Grassley and Senator Tom Coburn attempted to offer another amendment to restore the requirement during Senate debate on the health care bill, but the Senate Majority Leader would not let their amendment to fix this loophole even come up for a vote.  In addition to Senate committee and leadership staff, the amendment Grassley and Coburn filed during the Senate debate would have made the President, the Vice President, top White House staff and cabinet members all get their health insurance through the newly created exchanges.  It would not have applied to federal employees in the civil service.

Grassley said, "It's only fair and logical that top administration officials, who fought so hard for passage of this overhaul of America's health care system, experience it themselves.  If it's as good as promised, they'll know it first-hand.  If there are problems, they'll be able to really understand them, as they should."

Grassley said the motivation for his amendments is simple:  public officials who make the laws or lead efforts to have laws changed should live under those laws.

"This is the same principle that motivated me to pursue legislation over 20 years ago to apply civil rights, labor and employment laws to Congress," Grassley said.  Before President Clinton signed into law Grassley's long-sought Congressional Accountability Act of 1995, Congress had routinely exempted itself.

The Congressional Accountability Act made Congress subject to 12 laws, including the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Employee Polygraph Protection Act of 1988, the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute, the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Veteran's Employment and Reemployment Rights at Chapter 43 of Title 38 of the U.S. Code, and the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1989.

Today, Grassley is working to make sure Congress lives up to the same standards it imposes on others with legislation such as his Congressional Whistleblower Protection Act.

###

Recovery Act Funds Safeguard Groundwater, Replace Aging Infrastructure

WASHINGTON, March 18, 2010 - Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced the funding of projects in 20 states designed to protect public health by improving water quality and public sanitation services. The projects, funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act), are expected to provide construction jobs and create infrastructure needed to support community growth.

"Water and wastewater projects are moving forward in rural communities across the country and thanks to the Recovery Act, investments in water and wastewater infrastructure will help deliver safe drinking water and protect the environment throughout rural America," said Vilsack. "Through these projects, we are advancing the Obama Administration's economic recovery goals to rebuild and revitalize the nation's infrastructure. They will create urgently needed jobs when they are built and will support more job creation through rural economic development for years to come."

For example, the town of Norway, Maine, has been selected to receive a $385,000 loan and $1.1 million grant for wastewater system alterations that will improve sewer system efficiency, protect public health and safeguard groundwater quality. The project will replace ageing clay pipes, service lines and manholes. The new waste water system will reduce the waste water discharge from the Norway treatment facility into the Little Androscoggin River.

In Pitt County, N.C., the town of Bethel has been selected to receive a $256,000 loan and a $2.4 million grant to replace an aging water system that is constructed of iron, galvanized steel and asbestos-laden cement pipes. The tap water has a high iron level and is discolored. Pitt County is designated a Persistent Poverty County, with over 22 percent of the town's population below the poverty level. The project will improve water quality and boost water pressure.

The loan and grant funding announced today supports 60 projects and totals $159 million. To date, USDA has announced $2.3 billion in Recovery Act funds for water and environmental projects. The Recovery Act was signed into law by President Obama one year ago.

The funding announced today is being administered by USDA Rural Development's Water and Environmental Program which provides loans and grants to ensure that the necessary investments are made in water and wastewater infrastructure to deliver safe drinking water and protect the environment in rural areas.

Funding of individual recipients is contingent upon their meeting the terms of the loan or grant agreement. Below is a complete list of award recipients, by state:

Alaska

  • Matanuska Susitna Borough: $48,000 loan and $714,500 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

Georgia

  • City of Reynolds: $2,025,000 loan and $3,975,000 grant; the funding will be used for wastewater system improvements.

Illinois

  • Fayette Water Company (Herrick): $1,125,000 loan and $1,124,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Fayette Water Company (Laclede): $1,000,000 loan and $941,500 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • City of Lawrenceville: $6,040,000 loan; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • City of Roodhouse: $5,470,000 loan; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

Iowa

  • City of Bronson $311,000 loan and $239,600 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Southern Iowa Fixed Based Meters: $1,488,000 loan and $3,433,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Southern Iowa RWA Corning/Creston: $1,971,000 loan and $774,900 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Southern Iowa SW Cass Water System: $1,794,000 loan and $5,373,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • City of Hastings: $493,000 loan and $682,000 grant; the funding will be used for wastewater system improvements.

  • Eastern Iowa Regional Utility Service Systems Commission: $373,000 loan and $694,000 grant; the funding will be used for wastewater system improvements.

  • Regional Utility Service Systems Commission: $419,000 loan and $1,064,000 grant; the funding will be used for wastewater system improvements.

Kansas

  • Consolidated RWD #5 Atchison Co.: $3,200,000 loan; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • City of Nortonville: $622,000 loan and $493,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

Maine

  • Boothbay Harbor Sewer District: $342,000 loan and $250,000 grant; the funding will be used for wastewater system improvements.

  • Mars Hill Utility District (Sewer): $70,000 loan and $180,000 grant; the funding will be used for wastewater system improvements.

  • Mars Hill Utility District (Water): $750,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Town of Norway: $385,000 loan and $1,105,000 grant. The funding will be used for wastewater system improvements.

Minnesota

  • City of Pine City: $1,481,000 loan and $439,000 grant. The funding will be used for water system and wastewater system improvements.

Missouri

  • City of Caruthersville: $1,500,000 loan. The funding will be used for wastewater system improvements.

  • City of Essex: $845,000 loan and $833,900 grant; the funding will be used for wastewater system improvements.

  • Pike County PWSD #1: $2,732,000 loan; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • City of Clarkton: $1,505,000 loan and $1,500,000 grant. The funding will be used for wastewater system improvements.

  • City of Grandin: $364,000 loan and $216,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • New Madrid County PWSD No. 6: $1,066,000 loan and $948,600 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

Montana

  • Wolf Creek WSD: $399,000 loan and $1,162,000 grant; the funding will be used for wastewater system improvements.

New York

  • Village of Angelica: $500,000 loan and $347,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Town of Avon: $212,000 loan and $488,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Town of LeRoy: $55,000 loan and $140,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Town of Middletown: $475,000 loan and $708,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Town of Oakfield: $420,000 loan and $338,200 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Town of Stafford Water District #5: $404,000 loan and $496,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Village of Granville: $4,700,000 loan; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

North Carolina

  • Town of Bethel: $256,000 loan and $2,426,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Town of Black Creek: $349,000 loan and $146,000 grant; the funding will be used for wastewater system improvements.

  • Carteret County: $1,046,000 loan and $1,515,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Town of Morehead City: $4,932,000 loan and $4,869,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Belfast-Patetown Sanitary District: $1,608,000 loan and $1,392,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Eastern Wayne Sanitary District: $2,164,000 loan and $1,811,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Southeastern Wayne Sanitary District: $3,529,000 loan and $2,971,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Town of Princeton: $333,000 loan and $458,800 grant; the funding will be used for water system and wastewater system improvements.

  • Town of Rose Hill: $1,585,000 loan and $1,736,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Vance County Water District Phase 2A: $2,196,000 loan and $1,622,800 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Vance County Water District Phase 2B: $3,937,000 loan and $1,987,450 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

Ohio

  • Adams County Regional Water District: $736,000 loan; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

Pennsylvania

  • Ligonier Township Municipal Authority: $3,171,000 loan and $6,773,000 grant; the funding will be used for wastewater system improvements.

South Dakota

  • Town of Oldham: $132,000 loan and $221,000 grant; the funding will be used for wastewater system improvements.

  • City of Hoven: $311,000 loan and $216,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system and wastewater system improvements.

Tennessee

  • City of Dyer: $405,000 loan and $71,000 grant; the funding will be used for water and wastewater system improvements.

  • Hampton Utility District: $695,000 loan and $288,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • North Utility District of Rhea County: $660,000 loan and $420,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

Utah

  • Central Utah Water Conservancy District: $5,000,000 loan; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Sigurd Town: $620,000 loan and $2,266,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

Vermont

  • Canaan Fire District No. 2: $491,000 loan and $1,386,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

Virginia

  • Washington County Service Authority: $2,755,000 loan; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

  • Wythe County Old School Road Water: $640,000 loan and $426,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

West Virginia

  • City of Keyser: $4,500,000 loan and $3,100,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

Wisconsin

  • City of Kewaunee: $4,904,000 loan and $2,086,500 grant; the funding will be used for wastewater system improvements.

  • Village of Gilman: $550,000 loan and $155,000 grant; the funding will be used for water system improvements.

President Obama signed The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 into law on Feb. 17, 2009. It is designed to jumpstart the nation's economy, create or save millions of jobs, and put a down payment on addressing long-neglected challenges so our country can thrive in the 21st century. The Act includes measures to modernize our nation's infrastructure, enhance energy independence, expand educational opportunities, preserve and improve affordable health care, provide tax relief, and protect those in greatest need.

More information about USDA's Recovery Act efforts is available at www.usda.gov/recovery. More information about the Federal government's efforts on the Recovery Act is available at www.recovery.gov.

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