Updates from Michael
Freshmen Dems Unveil Plan to Lower Costs in Health Care Reform
Today I joined my some of my Senate colleagues in unveiling a package of amendments to the Senate health care reform bill that will rein in costs, increase transparency and improve efficiency. As part of this package, I authored an amendment that will streamline the administrative process so doctors and nurses can spend less time on paperwork and more time with their patients. The provision will require the adoption and regular updating of a single, national standard for some of the most basic electronic transactions that occur between insurers and providers. Please watch the video below of my floor speech discussing the amendment package.
My Amendment to Protect Medicare for Seniors Passes
Today, my amendment to the Senate health care reform bill to further protect and strengthen Medicare for seniors was passed with all senators supporting the effort. With this amendment, we are making it absolutely clear that nothing in this bill will cut guaranteed Medicare benefits for our seniors. This bill will extend the Medicare trust fund, lower premiums, increase Medicare benefits, and improve access to providers for our seniors. The amendment passed by a vote of 100-0 and had the support of the AARP, the Alliance for Retired Americans, and the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare.
Please watch the below video of my remarks on the Senate floor.
Breakfast at Place Bridge Academy
This morning, I had breakfast with students at Place Bridge Academy in Denver. Sitting at my table were mathematicians, scientists, kids who play in the band, drama students, one future architectural engineer, one future entrepreneur and one future fighter pilot. These are really bright kids, but they will have a harder time learning if they come to school hungry. This is why child nutrition is so important, and why so many came together today to help launch the Campaign to End Childhood Hunger in Colorado, a comprehensive 5-year plan to ensure that all kids have access to nutritious food at home, at school and in their communities.
To read about the Hunger-Free Schools Act, which I introduced in the Senate, CLICK HERE.
Too many kids in Colorado are going hungry
Tuesday, I urged federal lawmakers to revisit the role we play in fighting child hunger. New studies from the USDA and the Colorado Children's Campaign (CCC) released shocking statistics about the health of kids in Colorado: One in eight households in our state is going hungry, and in the last 8 years the number of Colorado kids living in poverty has grown by 72 percent. These numbers illustrate the unfortunate situation that many Colorado kids are living in--one that could be helped by proper nutrition programs in schools.
Nutrition has a significant impact on learning. Hungry students have shorter attention spans and have a more difficult time concentrating on their school work. At a minimum, we must provide adequate nutrition to our kids to give them every opportunity to succeed.
Earlier this year, I joined Senators Brown and Casey in introducing the Hunger Free Schools Act, which would help ensure that every child has adequate access to healthy and nutritious meals at school during the school year and during the summer months. The legislation would increase the number of kids who can eat school meals by enabling schools and districts to serve free meals to all students in very low-income areas without having to jump through needless administrative hurdles.
Visit to Pueblo and Fort Carson
This past weekend, I traveled to Pueblo and Fort Carson for two great events.
On Friday, I joined local leaders and U.S. Representatives John Salazar and Betsy Markey in a celebration of the start of the Arkansas Valley Conduit project-something Southeastern Coloradans have been waiting almost 50 years for.
Later that day, Mountainside Elementary School at Fort Carson celebrated its Gold Star Award for honoring our troops through Operation Caring Classroom. On any given day, two-thirds of the kids at Mountainside have at least one parent deployed. When I arrived, the kids were in the school's foyer, lining the stairwell up to the second floor, singing songs. They showed me a chain with 720 links, representing military parents who have been deployed, past and present. After the celebration, I stopped by several classrooms. It was a great day.
