I am very proud to have worked with other members to lead a bipartisan bill called Tackling Residential Energy and Economic Savings Act, or the TREES Act...

I deeply share the concerns of my constituents and those at our hearing today about the impacts that the coronavirus has had on communities of color.

For too long, the Federal Government has failed to adequately recognize and address structural racism as the public health crisis that it is.

I appreciate you mentioning telework just because I have worked on that issue for many, many years.

The Vaccines for Children program... is perhaps the most critical tool we can use to bring childhood vaccinations back on track.

As we continue to come out of the pandemic, we must make sure that we are building on the lessons that we learn and investing in reforms.

That is why I am a very strong supporter of school-based health centers.

During this pandemic, we have all witnessed the power of timely, effective healthcare, and particularly the power of vaccinations.

Pediatricians, obviously, are a very trusted voice for parents when explaining the importance, safety, and effectiveness of vaccines.

Today's hearing is so important so we can examine the ways that Congress can act to make vaccinations and other key services even more affordable and accessible.

This bill would actually help provide some parity to pediatricians who are spending that amount of time building that trusted relationship.

This hearing isn't only about addressing the SACKLER Act, which has been introduced. It is trying to offer some measure of justice.

We can trace back to one source, one family, the Sackler family, responsibility for fueling this opioid epidemic across the country.

I think until you got called out significantly on the dangers around this product, the view from inside the company... is, if there's loss of life, that's a cost of doing business.

Clearly what happens is that the actual contaminant level standard that gets set because of the feasibility analysis, that ends up typically being weaker than the goal.

I also understand that there is a further analysis, a health risk reduction and cost analysis that is conducted.

We are right now at--we are implementing the Safe Drinking Water Act standard-setting process as it is established.

Thanks, Mr. Chairman. Appreciate you holding the hearing. I want to thank you for your leadership on these issues.

Congress amended the Safe Drinking Water Act, SDWA, in 1996 to make the statute, quote, more effective after citing challenges in regulating drinking water contaminants.

If the value of that drug is worth paying for, the market is going to reflect that when Medicare goes into the market.

Innovative medications are worthless if people can't afford them.

If we are really going to build back better in an equitable way--and I know that the President is committed to that--we need to not only address these contamination issues but invest in these environmental justice communities and provide…

I appreciate you holding the hearing. I also want to thank Chairman Pallone for his leadership.

I want to focus today... on the issue of environmental justice and how it relates to the contaminated properties.

These communities are disproportionately communities of color and low-income communities, and they are bearing the brunt of our environmental pollution.