WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV), a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, released the following statement announcing that her bipartisan Ensuring Understanding of COVID-19 to Protect Public Health Act (S.3595) has recently been endorsed by the American Hospital Association (AHA):
“Given the recent accelerated spread of COVID-19, we must work diligently to not only track patient treatment outcomes, but also study the full health impacts of this disease across a wide range of demographics, including both short and long-term impacts,” said Senator Rosen. “I’m honored to have the support of the AHA for this important legislation that will ensure scientists and medical experts include a diverse set of patients in their research so we better treat patients from all backgrounds. I will continue working to protect the health and well-being of Nevadans and all Americans as we confront this unprecedented public health crisis.”
“We applaud Senators Rosen and Rubio for working to give the NIH, CDC and other federal partners the resources they need to better understand the short and long-term clinical effects of the coronavirus,” said Tom Nickels, Executive Vice President, Government Relations and Public Policy at the American Hospital Association. “Hospitals and health systems on the front lines of the fight against COVID-19 need the best possible information about this novel disease so they can continue to treat patients and save lives.”
BACKGROUND: In May, Senator Rosen and Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) introduced the Ensuring Understanding of COVID-19 to Protect Public Health Act, bipartisan legislation that would direct the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to conduct a longitudinal study on mild, moderate, and severe cases of COVID-19 on a diverse patient population to ensure the U.S. gains a full understanding of both the short and long-term health impacts of the novel coronavirus. Identical companion legislation was introduced in the House of Representatives by Reps. Diana DeGette (D-CO), Michael Burgess (R-TX), Anna Eshoo (D-CA), and Brett Guthrie (R-KY). The bill passed the House of Representatives in September as part of the HEROES Act 2.0, comprehensive COVID-19 relief legislation.
In addition to Rubio, Rosen’s bill has garnered a dozen bipartisan co-sponsors in the Senate, including Senators Bob Casey (D-PA), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Tom Carper (D-DE), Tina Smith (D-MN), Gary Peters (D-MI), Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), Susan Collins (R-ME), and Christopher Murphy (D-CT).
This legislation is also endorsed by the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Families USA, America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), the Gerontological Society of America, the American Public Health Association, Healthcare Leadership Council, Catholic Health Association, 2020 Mom, the American Occupational Therapy Association, the American Psychiatric Association, the March of Dimes, Coalition to Transform Advanced Care (C-TAC), Trust for America’s Health, Mom Congress, National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation, the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, the National Council on Aging, and the National Rural Health Association.
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