News & Media
Coronavirus March 30 Update: Details From the Relief Package, 3D Printing for Medical Devices and an Interactive Map of the Appropriations Response
Relief package enacted
The largest financial rescue package in U.S. history is now law.
President Donald Trump signed the roughly $2.3 trillion measure (PL 116-136) after the House cleared it Friday on a voice vote. Tens of billions of dollars will soon be flowing to families, businesses, hospitals and states to counteract the economic damage from the COVID-19 pandemic.
While overshadowing its predecessors in size, the record-breaking package was the third measure Congress has passed to respond to the pandemic since briefings on the initial outbreak began two months ago. Two earlier measures (PL 116-123, PL 116-127) bring the total price tag to perhaps $2.5 trillion.
That's the equivalent of over one-tenth the size of the U.S. economy, and a recognition of just how dramatically American life has changed, with businesses and schools shuttered and people across the country being asked to stay home unless absolutely necessary.
"In 20 short days our economy has taken a hit like we've rarely seen in American history," Ways and Means ranking member Kevin Brady, R-Texas, said during debate. "Congress must act aggressively and act together now to stem the economic damage."
House Republicans who normally chafe at spending billions of dollars, let alone trillions, stood up one after another to express support for the package, arguing it was no one's fault that a pandemic has closed America for business.
"I'm concerned about the $2 trillion price tag," said Rep. James Comer, R-Ky. "But the American people need help."
While support for the measure was broad and bipartisan, the move to pass the bill by voice vote was nearly derailed by Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., who sought a recorded roll call vote. "I came here to make sure our republic doesn't die by unanimous consent in an empty chamber and I request a recorded vote," he said.
To avoid a roll call, which would force all House members to fly back to Washington despite the coronavirus risk, House leaders ensured a majority of the members were seated in the chamber so they could reject Massie's request according to House rules.
And despite the size of the new relief package, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said another one would be coming soon. "We do know that we must do more," she said. Jennifer Shutt and Katherine Tully-McManus have the full story here.
The bottom line: Financial relief is now secured -- and even more may be on the way.
Details of the Package
Here are the major elements of the relief package, based on bill text, congressional summaries and other sources:
- Financial aid to businesses: The measure would deliver almost $910 billion in direct assistance to businesses, through a mix of grants and loans.
That includes $454 billion through new emergency lending facilities at the Federal Reserve for larger companies, with states and cities also eligible; $377 billion in loans to small businesses, much of which won't need to be paid back if used to maintain payroll; $61 billion in aid to airlines, more than half of it cash grants; and $17 billion in loans to companies considered critical to national security if their continued viability is threatened.
- Tax breaks for households, companies: About $590 billion in tax breaks, including the package's centerpiece tax rebates for individuals and families worth $292 billion. There's also over $200 billion in business deductions for losses and interest expense, $55 billion in tax credits for cash-strapped firms to avoid job cuts, and employer payroll taxes due this year would be deferred.
- Money for federal agencies, hospitals, states: Roughly $480 billion to help contain and treat the disease through supplemental appropriations, temporary increases in Medicare and Medicaid payments and funding for community health centers.
Hospitals and other health care providers would get $130 billion, with another $17 billion for veterans health care. There's $27 billion for stockpiling medical supplies and research and development on vaccines and drug treatments. States would get $150 billion to refill depleted coffers, while states and localities would get $31 billion for education, $25 billion for public transit systems, and $10 billion would go directly to airports.
- Unemployment insurance, nutrition and housing aid: About $300 billion would flow to laid-off workers and low-income households struggling to pay their bills.
Most of that would be for a new supercharged unemployment insurance regime that will provide an extra $600 a week in jobless aid through July 31, plus extend regular unemployment compensation by 13 weeks after state benefits are exhausted. The package also contains over $40 billion to boost food stamps and school meal programs, child care funding and rental housing assistance.
Read our House Action Report for a full summary of the bill.
Flexible food stamps
State officials have begun asking the Agriculture Department for authority to waive some federal restrictions on food stamp purchases as they try to provide more options to low-income people grappling with COVID-19.
For example, Gov. Roy Cooper, D-N.C., has requested authority from the USDA's Food and Nutrition Service to allow people enrolled in his state's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to buy hot foods or prepared items at retail stores already approved to redeem other food stamp purchases.
And Gov. Greg Abbott, R-Texas, is requesting authority to let SNAP users in his state buy take-out food at restaurants. Like other governors, Abbott has banned dine-in service at restaurants while there is the threat of the coronavirus spreading wherever there's a gathering of people.
But Stacy Dean, vice president for food assistance policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, said Abbott's request is novel but she doesn't know how practical it will be if approved.
"The SNAP benefit is still a very basic, bare-bones benefit. The average benefit per meal per person is still $1.40. Meals at restaurants would be very unaffordable based on the benefit," Dean said. Ellyn Ferguson has the full story here.
FDA pushes 3D printing of medical devices
The Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization last week for the manufacture of medical devices through 3D printing to help hospitals obtain medical equipment like ventilators that are now in short supply.
The authorization is meant to spur companies that don't typically manufacture medical devices or personal protective equipment to bridge severe shortages in the supply chain without having to deal with some regulatory hurdles.
"We're investigating a variety of innovative approaches to acquiring [personal protective equipment] to supplement the work our supply chain folks are doing," said Anne Wellington, an executive at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, on a call with health care systems and manufacturers Friday. "We're interested if there are 3D printing specs or use cases," she said, especially for face shields and other types of masks.
Cedars-Sinai, a health system in southern California, a COVID-19 hotspot, has postponed elective surgeries for several weeks.
OCR issues COVID-19 bulletin
The Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Civil Rights released guidance on Saturday reminding health care facilities to abide by anti-discrimination laws when administering services during the COVID-19 crisis.
Specifically, the bulletin outlines that there are guardrails to prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, national origin, disability, age, sex, and exercise of conscience and religion, even in a time of crisis.
The COVID-19 emergency "presents some new possible applications of civil rights now. So as crisis standards of care are being either drafted or reevaluated or taken off a shelf, we have to make sure they are consistent with the current state of the law," said OCR Director Roger Severino in a call with reporters on Saturday.
Severino said that OCR has already received several complaints, but that he could not speak to the content of any specific complaints they have received. "We have heard the requests for additional guidance and we will certainly make ourselves available for any state that wants to get technical assistance before they implement their guidelines related to crisis standards of care," said Severino. "We hope to issue additional guidance in the coming days."