Chairman's Press
Alexander: USMCA is Very Good News for Tennessee Workers, Especially Autoworkers
WASHINGTON, January 16, 2019 - U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) today released the following statement after he voted for and the Senate passed, by a bipartisan vote of 89-10, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Act (USMCA): "Today, the United States Senate approved the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. This is very good news for Tennessee workers, especially autoworkers, in 88 of our 95 counties. It updates the North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) of 1994, which was als… Continue Reading
01.15.20
Alexander: Senate Labor Committee Approves Trade Agreement to Create Even More Good-Paying Jobs
"The single most important step the United States could take in 2020 to further improve a growing economy is certainty in our trade agreements. This agreement, as well as the trade agreement with China the president is expected to sign today, both contribute to that certainty." - Senator Lamar Alexander WASHINGTON, January 15, 2019 - Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) today released the following statement after the Senate labor committee voted to approve the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreeme… Continue Reading
01.13.20
Alexander Statement on Department of Labor Final Joint Employer Rule
WASHINGTON, January 13, 2020 - Senate Labor Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) today released the following statement on the U.S. Department of Labor's final rule on the joint employer standard: "The new joint employer rule will help restore to franchise owners-those who are hurt the most by the current patchwork of joint employer standards-the opportunity to make their way into the middle class. The rule gives businesses and workers a clear standard as to whether employees have two d… Continue Reading
01.07.20
Chairman Alexander Welcomes Sen. Kelly Loeffler to HELP Committee
NASHVILLE, January 7, 2020 - Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) today welcomed U.S. Senator Kelly Loeffler (R-Ga.) to the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, after she was sworn into the Senate replacing former Senator Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.): "I welcome Senator Kelly Loeffler to the Senate and look forward to working with her to lower what Americans pay out of their own pockets for health care and to make a college education worth students time and money. Sen. Loeffler has … Continue Reading
01.06.20
Alexander: Brad Smith Has the Experience to Lead CMS Innovation Center
WASHINGTON, D.C., January 6, 2020 - U.S. Senate health committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) today released the following statement on the appointment of Brad Smith to serve as the director for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' innovation center: "Brad has exactly the right experience to lead a center charged with coming up with innovative ways to lower health care costs and improve quality. He has founded a successful health care company and knows how state and federal g… Continue Reading
01.02.20
Alexander Statement on Trump Administration E-Cigarette Flavor Ban
KNOXVILLE, January 2, 2020 - Senate health committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) released the following statement after the Trump Administration announced a plan to ban flavored e-cigarette pods with the exception of tobacco and mint flavors: "This flavor ban coming a month after Congress raised the legal age to purchase e-cigarettes and tobacco products from 18 to 21 reflects bipartisan alarm about the epidemic of teenage vaping. One in four high-schoolers use vaping devices and are at … Continue Reading
12.19.19
Alexander: President Trump, Congress Give Christmas Present to Historically Black Colleges and 20 Million Students Who Fill Out FAFSA Each Year
WASHINGTON, D.C., December 19, 2019 - U.S. Senate education committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) today said that President Trump and Congress have delivered a Christmas present for millions of students and families after President Trump signed bipartisan legislation into law that included an amendment by Alexander and Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.) that simplifies the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form that 20 million families, including 8 million minority students, fi… Continue Reading
12.18.19
Alexander Statement on Texas v. Azar Court Case Decision
WASHINGTON, December 18, 2019 - United States Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), chairman of the Senate health committee, today released the following statement on the Texas v. Azar court case: "Congress eliminated the individual mandate penalty, and the court has finished the job by ruling the individual mandate itself is unconstitutional. "As for the rest of Obamacare, I am not aware of a single senator who said they were voting to repeal Obamacare when they voted to eliminate the individual… Continue Reading
12.16.19
Alexander: Congress to Vote This Week on Several Important Provisions of the Lower Health Care Costs Act
WASHINGTON, December 16, 2019 - Senate health committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) today said Congress will vote this week on several important provisions of the Lower Health Care Costs Act of 2019. "The government funding legislation that Congress will consider this week takes several important steps to address Americans' number one financial concern: what they pay out of their own pockets for health care," Alexander said. "The legislation includes five provisions from the bipartisan L… Continue Reading
12.16.19
Alexander: I Will Continue to do Everything I Can to Keep Surprise Medical Bills at the Top of Congress’ To-Do List Until it’s Done
WASHINGTON, December 16, 2019 - Senate health committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) today said he intends to do everything he can to keep surprise medical billing at the top of Congress' to-do list in 2020 until it's done. "Protecting patients from surprise billing is something almost everyone wants fixed. One out of five patients who goes to an emergency room eventually receives an unexpected bill for as much as $300 or $3,000 or $30,000 because the doctor who treated them was not part … Continue Reading
12.12.19
Alexander: Dr. Hahn’s Experience as a Practicing Oncologist, a Successful Leader of MD Anderson and Work at NIH, Make Him the Right Leader for the FDA
"Dr. Hahn can now get to work approving new life-saving drugs and devices, regulating tobacco and e-cigarettes, addressing the opioid crisis, ensuring pain patients can receive the medications they need and protecting our nation's food supply." - Senator Lamar Alexander WASHINGTON, December 12, 2019 - Senate health committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) said that "Dr. Stephen Hahn's experience as a practicing oncologist, a successful leader of the MD Anderson Cancer Center and work at the… Continue Reading
12.12.19
Alexander: Health Committee Approves Legislation to Help States Prevent Child Abuse and Ensure Safety and Welfare of Children
"This is a very diverse committee that is known for reaching agreement on issues that are consequential to the American people. I am glad that we have continued that record this year. So far the Committee has passed 13 bills, three of which have become law - I anticipate there will be more before the year is over. We approved 46 nominees, 39 whom have been confirmed by the full Senate. And we held 13 hearings on topics that impact the lives of every American, including e-cigarettes and vaping; t… Continue Reading
12.10.19
House Passes Alexander-Murray Bill to Simplify Federal Student Aid Application Form
WASHINGTON, December 10, 2019 - The U.S. House of Representatives today passed bipartisan legislation sponsored by Senate Education Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-Wash.) that simplifies the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form that 20 million American families, including 8 million minority students, fill out every year to qualify for federal student aid. The legislation also permanently reauthorizes and provides $255 million in a… Continue Reading
12.10.19
Alexander: Senate Passes “Most Important” New Law For Over-the-Counter Drugs in 40 Years
WASHINGTON, D.C., December 10, 2019 - Senate health committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) said the Senate today passed "the most important new law affecting the safety, innovation, and affordability of over-the-counter drugs since the 1970's." "In 2015, as the Senate health committee was working on the 21st Century Cures Act, I asked Janet Woodcock, the Director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research at the Food and Drug Administration, if there was any change she needed but had… Continue Reading
12.10.19
Alexander Statement on Fourth Anniversary of Fixing No Child Left Behind
WASHINGTON, December 10, 2019 - U.S. Senate Education Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) made the following statement on the fourth anniversary of the Every Student Succeeds Act becoming law: "Four years ago, President Obama signed the Every Student Succeeds Act, calling it a 'Christmas Miracle.' Today, states are taking advantage of what the Wall Street Journal called 'the largest devolution of federal control to the states in a quarter-century.' "Under ESSA, every state plan for s… Continue Reading
12.10.19
Senate Passes Bill with Alexander-Murray Amendment to Permanently Fund Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Simplify Federal Student Aid Application Form
WASHINGTON, December 10, 2019 - The United States Senate today passed bipartisan legislation that included an amendment from Senate Education Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-Wash.) that permanently reauthorizes $255 million in annual funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Minority Serving Institutions and simplifies the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form that 20 million families, including 8 million minority… Continue Reading
12.08.19
Bipartisan House and Senate Committee Leaders Announce Agreement on Legislation to Lower Health Care Costs
WASHINGTON, December 8, 2019 - Senate Health Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone Jr. (D-N.J.) along with Ranking Member Greg Walden (R-Ore.) today announced they have reached a bipartisan, bicameral agreement on legislation to lower what Americans pay out of pocket for their health care. "I do not think it is possible to write a bill that has broader agreement than this among Senate and House Democrats and Republicans on… Continue Reading
12.05.19
Senate Passes Bipartisan Solution to Permanently Fund Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Minority Serving Institutions and Simplify the FAFSA for 20 Million Families
WASHINGTON, December 5, 2019 - The United States Senate today passed a bipartisan amendment to the House-passed FUTURE Act sponsored by Senate Education Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Senators Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Doug Jones (D-Ala.), Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Chris Coons (D-Del.) to make permanent $255 million in annual funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Minority Serving Institutions, simplify the Free Application… Continue Reading
12.05.19
Alexander: Senate Takes “Big First Step” in Simplifying the FAFSA for 20 Million American Families
WASHINGTON, December 5, 2019 - Senate education committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) today said "the Senate has taken a big first step in simplifying the FAFSA for 20 million families, including 8 million minority students," after the Senate passed bipartisan legislation that makes permanent $255 million in annual funding for HBCUs, cuts up to 22 questions from the federal student aid application form (FAFSA), and eliminates bureaucratic verification nightmare for most students. The bip… Continue Reading
12.03.19
Senate Education Leaders Propose Bipartisan Solution to Simplify the FAFSA for 20 Million Families and to Permanently Fund Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Minority Serving Institutions
WASHINGTON, December 3, 2019 - Senate Education Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Senators Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Doug Jones (D-Ala.), Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Chris Coons (D-Del.) today released a bipartisan amendment to the House-passed FUTURE Act to make permanent $255 million in annual funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Minority Serving Institutions, simplify the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for… Continue Reading
