PHOENIX – Arizona senior Senator Kyrsten Sinema and a bipartisan group of Senators called on Congressional leaders to increase coronavirus relief for Arizona community health centers in the next legislative package.
“Arizona community health centers on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic must get the resources needed to keep doors open and continue saving lives,” said Sinema.
Previously, Congress appropriated $2 billion in emergency funding provided to community health centers, including $600 million dedicated to testing. However, Community health centers across America are anticipating $7.6 billion in lost revenue and 105,000 lost jobs. Over 2,000 centers have already had to close their doors and many more remain concerned about how long they will be able to stay open. In her bipartisan letter, Sinema called for increased coronavirus relief for community health centers. These critical health providers serve vulnerable communities and have stayed open through the pandemic to provide essential care to all Arizonans.
Read Sinema’s full letter HERE.
In April, Sinema helped secure critical personal protective equipment from General Dynamics for the Arizona Alliance of Community Health Centers through Protect AZ, an Arizona non-profit connecting front-line health care workers to critical medical equipment during the coronavirus outbreak.
In the recent Congressionally-approved coronavirus package, Sinema helped secure $310 billion for the PPP loans, $60 billion for smaller, disadvantaged businesses, $60 billion for EIDL and grants, $75 billion for health care providers, and $25 billion for testing, including $11 billion directly to states. Sinema also helped secure a number of priorities in the sweeping coronavirus-response CARES Act law, including a $150 billion relief fund for state, local, and Tribal governments, $55 billion more in investments in hospitals and health care workers, and an increase in unemployment benefits. Sinema also recently wrote an op-ed outlining Arizona needs she is working to include in the next coronavirus-response legislation.
Sinema has also added a resources page to her website, www.sinema.senate.gov/corona, for Arizonans looking for the latest information on coronavirus.
