AGD Capitol Connections

On March 11, President Joe Biden signed into law the American Rescue Plan Act (H.R.1319), a massive $1.9 trillion COVID-19 aid package passed using the budget reconciliation process in Congress. No Republicans in the House or Senate voted in favor of the legislation.

AGD send a letter of support to Senators Rob Portman (R-OH) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) on March 5 for their bipartisan legislation, the Healthy Workplaces Act (S.537). The bill would create a tax credit for qualified expenses that help prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace.

Effective March 11, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued the seventh amendment to the Declaration under the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act (PREP Act) to authorize dentists and dental students to administer COVID-19 vaccines in all 50 states.

Representatives Yvette Clark (D-NY) and Paul Gosar (R-AZ), and Senators Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Roger Wicker (R-MS) have reintroduced a bill to improve the dental faculty loan repayment program, the Dental Loan Repayment Assistance Act (H.R.1285/S.449).

On February 27, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization (EUA) for the third vaccine for the prevention of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The EUA allows the Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine to be distributed in the U.S for use in individuals 18 years of age and older.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed the American Rescue Plan Act (H.R.1319) on February 27, along a party-line vote. The $1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus proposal will now be taken up in the Senate, where the package will be revised to remove a provision that would increase the federal minimum wage to $15/hour.

Senators Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) introduced a bill on February 25 to improve dental insurance coverage available to children through the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).

Rep. Julia Brownley (D-CA) reintroduced the Dental Care for Veterans Act (H.R.914) on February 12. The bill would eliminate the current statutory eligibility restrictions for VA dental care and expand eligibility for VA dental care to all veterans enrolled in the system.

On February 9, the National Academies of Sciences Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) released a review of the Revised National Toxicology Program (NTP) Monograph on the Systematic Review of Fluoride Exposure and Neurodevelopmental and Cognitive Health Effects.

A pandemic relief package could get a House floor vote by the end of the month, with House authorizing committees finishing the initial drafting efforts to turn President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion proposal, the American Rescue Plan, into legislative text.

On January 20, AGD sent a letter to Dr. Rochelle Walensky congratulating her on her recent selection by President Biden to be the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Administrator of the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). The CDC Director position does not require Senate confirmation.

The J&J vaccine division, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, reports that their vaccine is 66% protective against moderate to severe COVID-19 infection in a multi-country study.

After his January 20 inauguration, President Joe Biden issued a series of Executive Orders (EOs) in the first days of his term, aiming to advance his Administration’s response to the COVID-19 crisis and other priorities.

AGD and over 500 organizations sent a joint coalition letter to Congress on February 1, urging lawmakers to consider including targeted and temporary liability protections in the next COVID relief package.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a fifth amendment to the Declaration under the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act (PREP Act) on January 28 to add additional categories of qualified persons authorized to prescribe, dispense, and administer COVID-19 vaccines.

Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Representative Nanette Diaz Barragán (D-CA) introduced the Medicare Dental Benefit Act of 2021 (S.97/H.R.502)(text) on January 28.

The U.S. Treasury and Small Business Administration (SBA) rolled out a new round of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) last week. Businesses will be able to use PPP funding over a period of eight to 24 weeks. This new round is said to be more flexible and clearly defined than the previous round of loans.

President Biden released high-level details of his COVID-19 vaccination plan on January 15, following public remarks (written) that came a day after the release of his coronavirus relief plan.

The Competitive Health Insurance Reform Act (H.R. 1418) was signed into law on January 13. The law repeals the antiquated McCarran-Ferguson antitrust exemption granted to the health insurance industry decades ago.

AGD Members- Before reading this week's Capitol Connections, please take a moment to review the following information regarding a product recall alert: