Durbin To Trump And Senate Republicans: Don't Rip Away Health Care For Millions During Public Health Crisis

WASHINGTON - As the Trump Administration and Senate Republicans continue to push the Supreme Court to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, which provides health care coverage for millions of Americans, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) condemned the Administration's reckless effort in the middle of a public health emergency. Durbin highlighted how the abolition of the ACA would be devastating to women nationwide by eliminating protections for pre-existing conditions, allowing insurance companies to … Continue Reading

Durbin Speaks With FDA Commissioner About COVID-19 Vaccine Development

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) spoke by phone with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn about the research and approval process for COVID-19 vaccine candidates under Operation Warp Speed. On the call, Durbin pressed Hahn about maintaining the integrity of the FDA's safety and efficacy standard, and not cutting corners or permitting political interference in the effort to quickly develop a vaccine-especially given the controversy surrounding President Tru… Continue Reading

Durbin Attempts To Pass Legislation To Protect Immigrant Workers & Children In The Green Card Backlog

WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, today made two unanimous consent (UC) requests to protect immigrant workers and their children who are stuck in the green card backlog. Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) objected to both requests. First, Durbin asked for unanimous consent to pass the Lee-Durbin bipartisan agreement, which amends Lee's Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act. The… Continue Reading

Durbin Statement On President Trump's Memorandum Seeking To Exclude Undocumented Immigrants From Census Count For Congressional Apportionment

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today released the following statement regarding President Donald Trump's memorandum that seeks to exclude undocumented immigrants from the census count for the purpose of congressional apportionment: "Article I, Section 2 and the 14th Amendment in the Constitution explicitly require the federal government to conduct a census that counts the 'whole number of persons in each State.' "Just last year, the Supreme Court recognized that … Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Call Out President Trump On Reports Of Plan To Send Secret police TO Chicago

WASHINGTON - Following reports that President Donald Trump wants to send federal agents into cities, including Chicago, to conduct policing activities that are traditionally handled by local law enforcement, U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today sent a letter to President Trump calling on him to refrain from taking this action, which is opposed by Governor Pritzker, Mayor Lightfoot, and other local leaders. "With the right leadership, federal law enforcement can ser… Continue Reading

Durbin Introduces Bill To Combat Opioid Addiction As Nation Sees Rise In Overdose Deaths Amid COVID-19

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today introduced the Addiction Prevention and Responsible Opioid Practices Act, a bill to stem the opioid epidemic by expanding telehealth and treatment access and reining in the excessive volume of addictive opioids on the market. According to a recent analysis of opioid use in America, 128 people die in the United States each day due to opioid overdose and an estimated 1.7 million Americans suffer from substance use disorders related to prescribed o… Continue Reading

With Federal Benefits Set To Expire This Month, Durbin Calls On Senator McConnell To Bring House-Passed House Heroes Act To The Floor

WASHINGTON - With enhanced unemployment benefits set to expire at the end of the month, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today called on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to bring the House-passed Heroes Act to the floor for a vote in the Senate. The House passed the Heroes Act more than nine weeks ago. In a speech on the Senate floor, Durbin called out Senate Republicans for their delay in acting on additional COVID-19 relief legislation while cases continue to spike… Continue Reading

Durbin: We Must Honor John Lewis' Life By Protecting The Right To Vote For All Americans

WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) honored the life of U.S. Representative John Lewis (D-GA-05), a civil rights icon who risked his life to march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, to protest the right to vote, and who fought for racial justice and equality in America throughout his entire life. "For a man who had witnessed the depths of hatred and despair, John Lewis was one of the most hopeful people I have ever met," … Continue Reading

Durbin: Sending In Secret Police To Cities Like Portland & Chicago Is Unacceptable & Un-American

WASHINGTON - Following reports that President Donald Trump wants to send federal agents into cities, including Chicago, to conduct policing activities that are traditionally handled by local law enforcement, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today called on the Senate to pass legislation to block the Trump Administration from deploying federal forces as a shadowy paramilitary against Americans. The Preventing Authoritarian Policing Tactics on America's Streets Act, which was also i… Continue Reading

Durbin Joins Leahy, Murray, Tester To Call On President Trump To Increase PPE And Testing Capacity

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) joined Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Patty Murray (D-WA) and Jon Tester (D-MT) to call on President Trump to utilize resources already passed by Congress and signed into law to increase production of personal protective equipment (PPE) and testing capacity. Durbin, Leahy, Murray, and Tester also are leading Democratic members of the Senate Appropriations Committee. In a letter to President Trump, Durbin, Leahy, Murray and Tester wrote: "It was on… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Announce More Than $739 Million In Hospital Funding For COVID-19 Care In Illinois

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced that Illinois will receive a total of $739,971,747 in federal funding to support hospitals in Illinois providing COVID-19 care in communities across Illinois. The funding comes from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Health Provider Relief Fund and will help support more than 60 hospitals serving areas treating a large number of COVID-19 patients - many of which are communities of color.… Continue Reading

Durbin, Colleagues Introduce Resolution Opposing Russia's Inclusion In G7

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Co-Chair of the bipartisan Senate Ukraine Caucus, today led 12 of his colleagues in introducing a resolution opposing Russia's inclusion into the Group of Seven (G7). Despite Russia's occupation of Ukraine, its destabilizing actions against the U.S. and other democracies worldwide, and the recent reporting that Russia offered bounties to target American troops deployed to Afghanistan, President Donald Trump has repeatedly called for R… Continue Reading

Durbin Discusses Racial Disparities In Federal Investment, Health Care With Illinois Mayors

SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today spoke with the mayors of communities of color across Illinois about the racial disparities in federal investment, health care access, and economic support. On the call, Durbin discussed state and local fiscal relief funding in the House-passed Heroes Act that would help Illinois recover from the estimated $10 billion in state and local revenues Illinois could lose by next summer. Durbin also spoke about the remaining $130 billion in Paycheck Pr… Continue Reading

Durbin Statement On Federal Court Ordering Trump Admin To Reopen DACA Program For New Applicants

SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee and author of the Dream Act, today released the following statement regarding the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland's order for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to fully restore Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), which includes reopening DACA to eligible individuals who have been unable to apply due to President Trump's decision… Continue Reading

Durbin Speaks To Chicago Bar Association About Justice In Policing Act

SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today spoke to the Chicago Bar Association (CBA) Young Lawyers Section's (YLS) Racial Justice Coalition via webcast about the Justice in Policing Act of 2020, a comprehensive approach to hold police accountable for misconduct, change the culture of law enforcement, and build trust between law enforcement and our communities. "The deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and many other Black… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth, Senate Dems Press Trump Admin To Reverse Move Undermining COVID-19 Hospital Data Collection & Reporting

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today joined Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and 43 of their Democratic Senate colleagues in a letter to Vice President Mike Pence and Coronavirus Task Force Coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx, urging the Trump Administration to reverse recent changes requiring hospitals to report COVID-19 data to a new system set up by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) instead of the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN), wh… Continue Reading

Durbin Statement On Creation Of ICE "Citizens Academy" Pilot Program In Chicago

SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, today released the following statement in regards to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) plans to launch an Enforcement and Removals Office (ERO) "Citizens Academy" in Chicago, Illinois, where members of the community can learn about "defensive tactics, firearms familiarization and targeted arrests": "ICE should abandon its deeply flawed plan to launch a 'C… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Join Colleagues To Introduce Legislation To Support Bias And Anti-Racism Training In COVID-19 Response

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today joined U.S. Senator Kamala D. Harris (D-CA) and colleagues in introducing the COVID-19 Bias and Anti-Racism Training Act, legislation to ensure health providers and other individuals involved in COVID-19 testing, treatment, vaccine distribution, and response receive bias and anti-racism training. The COVID-19 pandemic has heightened the urgent need to address longstanding biases in our health care system. "Black and … Continue Reading

Durbin Discusses International Response To COVID-19 With Catholic Relief Services

SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today spoke with Catholic Relief Service representatives from the Diocese of Belleville about the international response efforts to the COVID-19 pandemic. Durbin advocated for additional international assistance in the next COVID-19 relief package, including at least $4 billion for Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. Durbin also called for renewing the United States' international leadership efforts in the global effort to develop therapeutics and vaccines t… Continue Reading

Durbin Calls For Comprehensive DOD Review Of Treatment Of Women Service Members & Service Members Of Color

PEORIA - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Vice Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, today urged the Department of Defense (DOD) to begin a comprehensive review of the treatment of women and persons of color in the military in light of the deeply disturbing murder of Army Specialist Vanessa Guillén at Fort Hood. In a letter to Secretary of Defense Mark Esper and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley, Durbin wrote that sexual assa… Continue Reading