Patty Murray

In the wake of Hurricane Irma, as hospitals were evacuating, the top priority was protecting vulnerable populations including people and individuals with disabilities, and children, and pregnant women.

An important part of that is also the mental health support and everything else that Medicaid brings.

I do not understand the impulse to strip away Medicaid expansion, particularly in areas where this problem is so intensively felt.

Since 2000, nearly 10,000 people in Washington State alone have died of opioid overdose.

I've heard these heartbreaking stories firsthand traveling around my home State of Washington.

I look forward to hearing your perspective on how we can better help our communities fight this crisis.

I'm glad to be continuing our discussion on this really important issue.

In the 21st Century Cures Act, I was also proud to champion provisions to improve the inclusion of historically underrepresented populations--including women, racial and ethnic minorities, children, and seniors--in clinical research.

I'm hearing from a lot of women who are very concerned about the direction our country is going today.

I was very proud to champion provisions in the Cures Act to improve the inclusion of historically underrepresented populations.

As Senator Murray recently referred to.

I'm proud of our work on Cures to address head-on some of the hardest to treat diseases by providing nearly $4.8 billion in funding for the NIH.

For far too long, our health system has failed patients and families seeking treatment and support.

I'm glad that Cures took an important first step and dedicated over $1 billion in new funding above and beyond the budget caps to help states and communities fight back against that crisis.

Cures was really first and foremost about providing hope, hope to the millions of people and families who are impacted by illness and disease.

I personally am disappointed the administration has not taken decisive action to address it.

Reasonably accurate and complete estimates of the workforce are crucial to well-functioning government programs and to many private initiatives.

I have also been disappointed by this Administration's implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act and the Secretary is not enforcing all the law's requirements.

I would find it appalling if, after 15 years, you were delaying it.

I was deeply disappointed by reports that Secretary DeVos is considering stalling again this implementation of this rule.

I am really concerned that the Department is now sending a signal to schools that sexual assault will not be taken as serious.

I have been concerned about the direction the Office for Civil Rights has taken under the leadership of President Trump, and Secretary DeVos, and Candice Jackson so far this year, especially when it comes to protecting the rights and…

As I mentioned in my opening remarks, President Trump kicked off his campaign disparaging Mexicans, talked about profiling Muslim Americans, made comments about women that I will not repeat in this room.

This is a President who kicked off his campaign by calling Mexicans criminals, who called for a ban on all Muslims coming to America, who openly ridiculed a journalist with a disability, who has openly demeaned women, who defended white…

You all will be responsible for fighting for our students, our workers, and our families even as we have watched this President actively working to undermine the middle class' access to opportunity and their financial security.