Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse is applauding a $484-billion bipartisan emergency deal to rescue small businesses, support hospitals, and expand testing amid the coronavirus pandemic. The legislation passed the Senate this evening by unanimous consent and heads to the House of Representatives. Whitehouse released the following statement:
“This bipartisan compromise is much better than the bill Leader McConnell tried to jam through on his own earlier this month. In addition to sending billions more in rescue funds to small businesses than Republicans initially proposed, this legislation provides $75 billion for hospitals and $25 billion for the testing and contact tracing we need to start reopening. Democrats secured so much more for Rhode Island’s economy and health care system by insisting on bipartisanship. I thank my delegation colleagues Jack Reed, Jim Langevin, and David Cicilline for standing firm to get us to this much improved position.”
A breakdown of the deal is available here.
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