ICYMI: Fresno Bee: Give Gavin Newsom what he wants for coronavirus, California Democrats tell Pelosi
Give Gavin Newsom what he wants for coronavirus, California Democrats tell Pelosi
"It is vital that the stimulus packages continue to provide increased federal funding for public health emergency preparedness and response for the State of California and its local entities, including counties, hospitals, and health systems," said Rep. TJ Cox.
By Kate Irby
Gov. Gavin Newsom has a long list of requests for Congress and the Trump administration to help with the coronavirus crisis in California, and dozens of congressional Democrats want to make sure the state gets all of it.
Newsom said in a letter Thursday that California alone needs at least $1 billion in additional funding to support hospitals. Those funds would cover getting more beds as hospitals are overrun — setting up mobile hospitals, tents and cots and obtaining additional ventilators and other supplies.
In a letter led by Rep. TJ Cox, D-Fresno, and joined by 26 other members of Congress from California, lawmakers urged House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, and other congressional leaders to grant Newsom’s requests.
“It is vital that the stimulus packages continue to provide increased federal funding for public health emergency preparedness and response for the State of California and its local entities, including counties, hospitals, and health systems,” Cox and others wrote. “As detailed in the letter, California and its 58 counties will need additional funding to continue providing necessary support for individuals and families confronting school closures, curtailed work hours, and job loss.”
Newsom’s letter last week had a laundry list of other requests, including extending unemployment benefits, additional support for safety net programs like Medicaid and food stamps, more funding for housing and homelessness programs, a program to give loans to small businesses, rental assistance for businesses, funding to extend schools’ technology capabilities, funding to transportation-related businesses, funding directly to state and local governments and more.
Newsom’s letter did not predict a total cost for all of his requests for California.
“Without a substantial economic intervention from the federal government, many of these middle-class households may fall into poverty,” Newsom wrote. “State and local governments need broad-based federal support to meet this moment and the needs of the people.”
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