Ranking Member's Press

WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, today welcomed the announcement that the Departments of Veterans Affairs, Defense, Education and Justice, along with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission, will launch a new...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee today announced that another bipartisan, HELP Committee-led bill passed the Senate.  The bill supports and improves critical programs to identify, diagnose, and treat medical conditions among newborn babies...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — At a Newsmaker press conference at the National Press Club today, U.S. Senator Tom Harkin, Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, unveiled bold new legislation to tackle the growing retirement crisis and rebuild the private pension system. Harkin’s legislation, the Universal,...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, issued the following statement after the HELP Committee approved eight nominees. The approved nominees include: Michael Keith Yudin to serve as Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services...

***As prepared for delivery***  WASHINGTON, D.C. – In a floor speech today, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, said that the President’s announcement in last night’s State of the Union that he would sign an executive order to raise the minimum wage for...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee and Senator Pat Roberts (R-KS), a member of the HELP Committee, today applauded unanimous Senate passage of a bipartisan bill that would make it easier for charities and cooperatives to continue to offer pensions to...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) today welcomed the news that President Obama will use his State of the Union address this evening to call for raising the minimum wage through Executive Order to $10.10 for federal contract workers.  He will also call on Congress to finish the job for all workers by passing the bill Harkin and...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA), Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT), and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) today highlighted a report released by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) that found seniors who had continuous health insurance coverage prior...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a statement submitted this week to the Congressional Record, U.S. Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, marked the 50th anniversary of the landmark Surgeon General report on smoking and health. “This 50th anniversary gives us an opportunity to...

“Today’s roundtable will focus on our main federal college access programs — TRIO and GEAR UP—and how they’re performing in helping low-income students access and persist through postsecondary education.  This roundtable marks our fifth event in a series to examine issues we plan to address in the upcoming...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Another bipartisan Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee bill is headed to President Obama’s desk following unanimous Senate passage last night. The Poison Center Network Act cleared the Committee in December and passed the U.S. House of Representatives last week. The legislation is the eleventh...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—At an event held today at the Economic Policy Institute (EPI), Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA joined Rep. George Miller (D-CA) and Jason Furman, Chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, to call on Congress to pass legislation Harkin and Miller have introduced to raise the minimum wage to $10.10.  Harkin is...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Tom Carper (D-DE) wrote to the Department of Defense (DOD) requesting that it take steps to address inaccuracies and information gaps in the “higher...

*As prepared for delivery* WASHINGTON, D.C.—In a floor speech Monday, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, expressed his support for extending federal unemployment insurance.  He also voiced concerns about the impact of proposed offsets, which include cuts to programs...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) today issued the following statement after learning that Congressman George Miller (D-CA), senior Democrat on the House Education and Workforce Committee, would retire at the end of his term.  Harkin and Miller were both elected to the U.S. House in 1974 and have worked together on numerous...

WASHINGTON, D.C.— Today, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) applauded the historic and continued success of anti-smoking efforts ahead of the 50th anniversary of the first Surgeon General’s report on smoking and health. The most recent evidence of the extraordinary progress made over the last five decades comes from a new study in the Journal of...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, welcomed the announcement by the Administration that a final rule issued today will help ensure that Medicaid’s home and community-based services programs provide full access to the benefits of community...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee welcomed the announcement this week that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is moving forward with implementation of the Drug Quality and Security Act, which Harkin led to Senate passage in November 2013 and...

WASHINGTON, D.C.— Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, today welcomed the announcement from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services that under provisions he authored in the Affordable Care Act (ACA), women will be able to gain access to medications that will...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, after the U.S. Senate voted to start debate on the Emergency Unemployment Compensation Extension Act, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) said Congress was one step closer to passing the bill. Harkin, as Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, has been a strong advocate for the millions of...