Ranking Member's Press
Floor Statement by Chairman Harkin on the Consequences of Repealing Health Reform
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) today made the following comments on the Senate floor about the importance of health reform and the consequences of repealing the law. The Senate is expected to vote on a Republican amendment that would repeal the Affordable Care Act, the health reform bill that was signed into law last year. Repeal would deprive millions of Americans of important protections against insurance companies, raise health costs, cut funding to rural hospitals in Iowa, and, ac… Continue Reading
02.01.11
Thursday: HELP Committee Holds Hearing on Retirement Security
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) today announced the Committee will meet on Thursday at 2:00 P.M. for the next hearing in a series on the growing retirement security crisis. The hearing will focus on what can be done to help Americans save more for retirement and make better decisions about their retirement savings. All hearings and markups are webcast live at: http://help.senate.govTestimony and archived videos will be… Continue Reading
01.31.11
Harkin Statement on Florida Court Ruling
WASHINGTON - Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) released the following statement on today's ruling by Florida U.S. District Court judge Roger Vinson on the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act: "Since the Affordable Care Act passed, opponents of reform have filed more than 20 different legal challenges in an attempt to derail important new protections and health care benefits for Americans. Judges across the country have already dis… Continue Reading
01.27.11
Chairman Harkin and Ranking Member Enzi Echo President Obama’s Call for Education Reform
WASHINGTON - Senators Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Mike Enzi (R-WY), Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP), tonight released the following joint statement after President Obama called for education reform in his State of the Union address:"Tonight President Obama renewed his pledge to improve our education system to help strengthen our nation's competitiveness. We have expressed a commitment to fix the No Child Left Behind Act, and we hope P… Continue Reading
01.27.11
HELP Committee Hears from Americans on Health Reform Benefits
WASHINGTON, D.C. - At this morning's hearing, Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) and other members of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) heard testimony from Americans who are already experiencing benefits of the Affordable Care Act. One witness, a 21 year old named Emily Schlichting who suffers from a chronic auto-immune disease, told the Committee that her life has drastically changed for the better thanks to the new health reform law. "I believe that allowing… Continue Reading
01.27.11
Harkin Remarks at Families USA 2011 Health Action Conference
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, made the following remarks on the benefits of health reform at the Families USA's 16th Annual Health Action Conference in Washington, D.C. today. Harkin was the first speaker at the conference, which is expected to draw more than 800 health care advocates from around the country."I see a lot of good friends, here, this morning. A special greeting to two Iowans: Carrie Fitzgeral… Continue Reading
01.26.11
Harkin Presses For Comprehensive Wellness Initiative To Fight Chronic Disease, Obesity And Reduce Health Care Costs
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) today reintroduced major legislation to create a healthier future for America by giving our citizens access to better preventive care and consumer information to encourage healthier lifestyles. The Healthier Lifestyles and Prevention America Act, also known as the HeLP America Act, provides all sectors of our society - child care centers, schools, workplaces, health care providers and communities - with the incentives and tools they need to reach th… Continue Reading
01.25.11
Harkin to Kick Off Families USA’s 16th Annual Health Action Conference on Thursday
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, will be the opening speaker at the Families USA's 16th Annual Health Action Conference, which begins this Thursday, January 27 at 8:30am. The conference, which is expected to draw more than 800 health care advocates from around the country, runs from Thursday, Jan. 27, through Saturday, Jan. 29, at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill. Other noteworthy figures expected… Continue Reading
01.25.11
Thursday: HELP Committee Holds Hearing on Health Reform Benefits
WASHINGTON - Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) today announced the Committee will meet on Thursday at 10:00 A.M. to examine how the Affordable Care Act protects consumers against insurance industry abuses. The hearing, entitled "The Affordable Care Act: The Impact of Health Insurance Reform on Health Care Consumers," will be the first in a series of hearings the HELP Committee will hold in the coming months to examine how the health reform … Continue Reading
01.18.11
Harkin: Repeal Would Deny Coverage to Millions of Americans with Preexisting Conditions
WASHINGTON - Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) released the following statement after the Department of Health and Human Services released a new report showing that, without the Affordable Care Act, up to 129 million Americans under the age of 65 who have a pre-existing health condition would be at risk of losing health insurance when they need it most, or be denied coverage: "The report released today by the Department of Health and Human … Continue Reading
01.06.11
Harkin Announces Series of Hearings on Health Reform Benefits
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) announced today that the Committee will hold a series of hearings in the coming months to examine how the health reform law benefits Americans. The hearings will explore implementation of several provisions of the Affordable Care Act and will feature testimony from Americans directly affected by the Act's provisions."Millions of Americans are already benefiting from protections in the hea… Continue Reading
01.06.11
Harkin on CBO Analysis of Health Reform Repeal
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) released the following statement after the Congressional Budget Office released a new analysis showing that repealing the Affordable Care Act would add $230 billion to the federal deficit by 2021: "Today's report from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office makes clear that Congressional Republicans' political stunt would not only deprive millions of Americans of important protections agains… Continue Reading
12.14.10
Undercover recordings of visits by GAO agents to for-profit schools
The files contain audio recordings of 26 visits to 13 for-profit schools in 2010. GAO visited each school twice, posing once as an applicant who was eligible to receive both grants and loans (Scenario 1), and once as an applicant with a salary and assets that would qualify the applicant only for unsubsidized loans (Scenario 2). Click here to download the file in .zip format.… Continue Reading
12.01.10
HELP Committee Advances Pending Bills and Nominations
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) announced the Committee passed six pieces of legislation and approved six nominees at today's executive session. All of the bills and nominations passed with unanimous consent and must now be approved by the full Senate. At the executive session, Harkin also welcomed Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) to the Committee."I am pleased that today the HELP Committee was able to move forward in a bipa… Continue Reading
12.01.10
Statement of Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA)
"I would like to thank everyone for being here for the second hearing in a series focusing on retirement security in America. Today, we are going to take a hard look at the management and administration of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation and see if we need to take steps to modernize the agency. "In this climate of uncertainty, PBGC's role is more important than ever. The Great Recession has taken a toll on workers all over the country. I talk to people every day that are struggling… Continue Reading
11.30.10
Under Harkin Leadership, Senate Passes Historic Food Safety Bill
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) hailed today's Senate passage of legislation to better protect Americans against contaminated food and food-borne illness. The measure passed by a vote of 73 to 25. Harkin, who is Chairman of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP), is a lead sponsor of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, and has worked closely with a bipartisan group of Senators over the past year to establish a broad coalition of support for the bill."For … Continue Reading
11.16.10
HELP Committee Executive Session Postponed
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee executive session to consider several bills, as well as to vote on any pending nominations that may be cleared for action, scheduled for today has been POSTPONED. The new time and date are to be determined.… Continue Reading
10.07.10
Statement of Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA)
"I want to welcome everyone to this hearing on retirement security, a timely issue that is of critical importance to every American. "A recent survey found that 92 percent of adults aged 44-75 believe there is a retirement crisis in America. Are they right? Is there a retirement crisis? Well, consider the following statistics: Over a quarter of workers do not have any meaningful retirement savings at all - none. Nearly half of the oldest Baby Boomers - who will turn 65 next… Continue Reading
10.05.10
HELP Committee to Examine Retirement Security in America
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) announced the Committee will hold a hearing on THURSDAY at 10:00 A.M. to examine the state of retirement security in the United States. The hearing will be webcast live at: http://help.senate.gov Testimony and archived videos will be posted at: http://help.senate.gov/hearings/ HEARING: The Wobbly Stool: Retirement (In)security in America WITNESSES: Panel I Phyllis Borzi, Ass… Continue Reading
09.30.10
Statement of Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA)
"This is the third in a series of hearings by this Committee examining the federal investment in for-profit colleges and universities. "As we have seen in recent months, this is a very wealthy and powerful industry. It has spent a small fortune on full-page ads in major newspapers drawing attention to its schools. "I certainly agree that, at their best, for-profit colleges offer a valuable alternative model for higher education. But this Committee's ongoing investigation has brought to light… Continue Reading
