Press Releases
Mass. Delegation Urges FEMA to Immediately Release Enough Ventilators from the Strategic National Stockpile to Massachusetts as Hospitals Prepare for Surge
Boston, MA -- United States Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Edward J. Markey (D-MA), along with Representatives Richard E. Neal, (D-MA-01), James P. McGovern (D-MA-02), Seth Moulton (D-MA-06), Stephen F. Lynch (D-MA-08), William Keating (D-MA-09), Joseph P. Kennedy III (D-MA-04), Katherine Clark (D-MA-05), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA-07) and Lori Trahan (D-MA-03), today wrote to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) urging the agency to immediately grant requests submitted by the … Continue Reading
April 06, 2020
Warren and Markey Demand Answers from Trump Administration on Rollback of Environmental Safeguards During COVID-19 Pandemic
Washington, D.C. - United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), along with Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and the Senate Democrats' Special Committee on the Climate Crisis, sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Andrew Wheeler on Friday regarding the Trump administration's ongoing efforts to roll back environmental safeguards during the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. … Continue Reading
April 04, 2020
Senators Warren and Markey Urge Department of Commerce, NOAA to Act Swiftly, Equitably, and Transparently in Allocating $300 Million in Fisheries Disaster Assistance
Boston, MA - United States Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) and Edward J. Markey (D-Mass) are calling on the Commerce Department and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to provide a swift, equitable, and transparent process in distributing the $300 million in fisheries disaster relief funds included in the recently enacted Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The coronavirus pandemic has caused restaurants across the United States to close and … Continue Reading
April 03, 2020
Warren Joins Bicameral Group of Lawmakers to Introduce Legislation that would Provide Critical Assistance to Vulnerable Communities Impacted by COVID-19
Washington, DC -- United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) joined Senators Mazie K. Hirono (D-Hawai’i) and Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), and Representatives Judy Chu (D-Calif.), Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.), and Lou Correa (D-Calif.), to unveil legislation to ensure that everyone in the United States - especially those in vulnerable communities - can access health care and other critical resources during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The Coronavirus Immigrant Families … Continue Reading
April 03, 2020
Massachusetts Awarded Over $92 Million in HUD Grants for COVID-19 Relief
Washington, D.C. - United States Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) today announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded over $92 million in federal grants to support cities and towns across Massachusetts as they combat the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.The funding, which was awarded through HUD's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG), and Housing Opportunities … Continue Reading
April 03, 2020
Warren, Markey, Neal, Pressley Address Disturbing Reports of Veteran Deaths at Massachusetts Soldiers' Homes
Washington, DC - United States Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Edward J. Markey (D-MA), along with Representatives Richard E. Neal (D-MA-01) and Ayanna Pressley (D-MA-07), today wrote to Ryan Lilly, Director of the Veterans Affairs (VA) New England Healthcare System, expressing their concern about the disturbing reports of the deaths of veteran residents at the Holyoke Soldiers' Home (HSH) and the Chelsea Soldiers' Home (CSH). The lawmakers urged Mr. Lilly to obtain more resources … Continue Reading
April 03, 2020
Senators Warren, Markey, Rep. Keating Commend Army Corps of Engineers Decision to Replace Cape Cod Canal Bridges
Boston, MA - Massachusetts Senators Elizabeth Warren and Edward J. Markey, and Congressman William R. Keating (MA-09), today commended the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) for its final “Major Rehabilitation Evaluation Report” on the Bourne and Sagamore Bridges in Cape Cod. This final report was released today and formally adopts the USACE New England District’s recommendation to replace both structures with two new bridges that conform to modern highway design standards. The project will … Continue Reading
April 03, 2020
Warren, Grijalva, Velázquez, Castro Ask Trump Administration to Address Puerto Rico's Unique Vulnerability to COVID-19
Washington, D.C. - United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), along with Representatives Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), House Natural Resources Committee Chair; Nydia M. Velázquez (D-N.Y.), House Small Business Committee Chair; and Joaquin Castro (D-Texas), Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair; wrote to Vice President Mike Pence, head of the White House Task Force on Coronavirus, regarding the economic and public health vulnerabilities of Puerto Rico amid the novel coronavirus disease … Continue Reading
April 03, 2020
Warren Joins Duckworth to Call For Investigation into Suspicious Deletion of Online Information on the Strategic National Stockpile
Washington, DC - United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) joined Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) along with Senators Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), and Mazie K. Hirono (D-Hawai’i) in demanding an immediate independent investigation into potential improper political interference in the management of the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS). The senators’ letter to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) comes as a response to reports that … Continue Reading
April 03, 2020
Warren and Booker Urge Labor Department to Reverse Guidance that Strips Workers of Leave Benefits
Washington, DC - United States Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Cory Booker (D-NJ) today urged the Department of Labor (DOL) to reconsider its decision to strip emergency paid sick and family leave from millions of workers, a benefit established under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), the second Coronavirus aid package passed in mid-March. Last week, the DOL issued guidance that broadly expanded the categories of workers exempt from such emergency leave benefits, in … Continue Reading
April 02, 2020
Warren Joins Colleagues in Calling for Strengthening Background Checks, New Federal Guidance Amidst Surge in Gun Sales
Washington, DC - United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) joined Senators Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and 12 of their colleagues today in calling for strengthening background checks amidst a massive increase in gun sales during the coronavirus emergency. In a letter sent to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Bureau for Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF), the Senators express serious concerns that the surge in … Continue Reading
April 02, 2020
Warren Urges FDA to Address Shortages of Drugs Prematurely Touted by President Trump as COVID-19 Treatments
Washington, D.C. -- United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) sent a letter to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) urging the agency to address reports of shortages of hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine, antimalarial drugs typically used to treat lupus, malaria, and rheumatoid arthritis that President Trump has repeatedly promoted as treatments for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), despite neither drug being tested in appropriate clinical studies."President Trump's … Continue Reading
April 01, 2020
Senator Warren Unveils Legislation to Protect Individuals Experiencing Homelessness During Coronavirus Pandemic
Washington, D.C. - United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) today introduced the Senate companion to the Public Health Emergency Shelter Act, legislation that would provide critical funding to states and local governments responding to the needs of families and individuals experiencing homelessness during the COVID-19 crisis. The legislation was first introduced in the House of Representatives by Congresswomen Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.)."Americans need … Continue Reading
April 01, 2020
Warren Calls on DoorDash, Grubhub, Uber Eats, and Instacart to Protect Workers' Health, Increase Pay to Compensate for Coronavirus Risks
Washington, D.C. -- United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) sent letters to the CEOs of DoorDash, Grubhub, Uber Eats, and Instacart, urging them to reclassify their delivery workers as employees, rather than independent contractors, and provide appropriate pay, benefits, and protections during the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. By continuing to misclassify these workers as independent contractors, the food delivery companies exclude their workers from critical labor … Continue Reading
April 01, 2020
Warren Joins Bipartisan, Bicameral Push for Swift, Effective Implementation of Tribal Provisions of the CARES Act
Washington, DC — United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and U.S. Senator Tom Udall (D-N.M.), vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, today wrote to President Donald Trump requesting that federal agencies implementing the tribal provisions of the CARES Act do so in a manner that upholds the federal trust and treaty responsibilities to tribal nations, respects tribal sovereignty, and provides for meaningful government-to-government consultation with tribal nations. … Continue Reading
April 01, 2020
Warren Joins Colleagues Calling for Release of Vulnerable, Low-Risk Detained Persons from Immigration Detention Facilities Amid Coronavirus Crisis
Washington, DC - United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) joined Senator Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.) and a number of their colleagues in a letter to U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Acting Secretary Chad F. Wolf, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Acting Director Matthew T. Albence, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Acting Commissioner Mark A. Morgan, pushing for the release of vulnerable and low-risk detained persons from DHS custody as the number of … Continue Reading
March 31, 2020
Warren Calls on Mnuchin and Powell to Protect Workers & Root Out Corruption When Doling Out New CARES Act $500 Billion Bailout Fund
Washington, D.C. - United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and Federal Reserve Chairman Jay Powell in which she laid out a detailed list of conditions that should come with any bailout funds to corporate America. In her letter, Senator Warren urged Secretary Mnuchin and Chairman Powell to use their broad authority under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to ensure that bailout funds (1) are used to … Continue Reading
March 31, 2020
Warren Joins Senate and House Colleagues in Calling for U.S. to Lift Sanctions as Iran Reels from Coronavirus
Washington, DC -- United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) joined her Senate and House colleagues Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) and nearly three dozen lawmakers in urging the Trump Administration to ease sanctions against Iran, as the country suffers from a major humanitarian crisis triggered by COVID-19. The letter comes just two weeks after the Trump Administration levied additional sanctions against Iran in the … Continue Reading
March 31, 2020
Warren Demands Answers from FEMA on Plans to Ensure Massachusetts Receives Essential Medical Equipment
Washington, D.C. - United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) wrote to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) requesting information on how the federal government plans to ensure the Commonwealth receives essential medical equipment as it works to combat the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The senator's letter comes amid reports that the federal government is outbidding and seizing the state's orders for personal protective equipment (PPE) and other essential … Continue Reading
March 30, 2020
Lawmakers Urge HHS to Address Racial Disparities in Access to Testing and Treatment during the Coronavirus Pandemic
Washington, D.C. -- United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), along with Senators Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Congresswoman Robin Kelly (D-Ill.), chair of the Congressional Black Caucus Health Braintrust, sent a letter urging the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to collect racial and ethnic demographic data on testing and treatment for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in order to identify … Continue Reading