Respirators used in manufacturing and in mining and in construction could be used in health care settings. They are very similar but not the same but could be used that way. And the only thing thats keeping a lot of manufacturers from selling those masks to the Broader Health care population is because of Liability Provisions or lack of liability protections. There is the public readiness Emergency Preparedness act passed in 2005 that basically indemnifies manufacturers, distributors, and users of these mafpks pardon me of users of products defind as a device or covered counter measure. So i happen to be on the staff that did that legislation in 2005. We did not consider a situation like this today. We thought about cac vaccines. Therapeutics. But not respirators to be the first and only line of defense for Health Care Workers. Thats an important capacity and capability is to include language or modify the prep act to include language to include rest pritory protective devices for that
The committee will come to order. I thank all of our witnesses for returning this morning. We appreciate the recognition of our interest and oversight responsibilities. This is a crisis that is evolving quickly. Since our hearing yesterday, the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a global pandemic. Cdc has now reported that we have almost 1,000 confirmed cases. That is up from 100 reported cases a week ago. A 900 increase. Americans are worried. They are scared. It is essential that we are able to hear directly from the Health Officials leading this effort with just the facts. Im going to go to the republican side first which is where we left off. Before i do that, without objection, the following three letters we sent on march 3rd to hhs and cdc requesting basic information including about t t testing are entered into the record. We have not gotten any response to those letters. And with that, i recognize mr. Higgins. Thank you, madam chair. Gentlemen, thank yo
U. S. Senate while the chamber continues debate on an economic a package, negotiations are ongoing but it is possible senators could vote as early as monday on the deal. Live to the senate here on cspan2. The presiding officer the senate will come to order. The chaplain dr. Barry black will lead the senate in prayer. The chaplain let us pray. Eternal lord, you are worthy of our praise. Save us from the forces that threaten our nation and world. Lord, inspire our lawmakers even though the earth seems to tremble and the mountains seem to shake. May our senators always embrace your divine principles and live blameless lives. Give them the wisdom to labor with integrity and to seek your divine approval. Illuminate the darkness that inevitably comes and lead them to your desired destination. Empower us all almighty god, with a faith that will keep us surefooted even in slippery places. We pray in your great name. Amen. The presiding officer please join me in reciting the pledge of allegianc
Bless each and every one of us. It. It been so interesting talking to our tennesseans and as they have faced the issues that we have with coronavirus. What is happening, and the mother response to it in how we are going to fight, were going to win this war. We are going to defeat this. We have to look at it as hard health and food and Financial Assistance and a couple of my tennesseans last night, as we were talking and discussing this, whether thoughts of their questions to me went to is the relationship that we have with china. And how can we trust that we know what china new, that we know when they knew it and their lack of transparency around what is happened with covid19. As weve gotten a couple of months past the start of this, really these questions are unanswered. And how do we tell our tennesseans on the phone last night, even as this virus it came out of wuhan china, they had in december and it has now touched Six Continents and we know that people dealing with containment, t
A couple of my tennesseans last night as we were talking and discussing this, what their thoughts and their questions to me went to is the relationship that we have with china, and how can we trust that we know what china knew, that we know when they knew it, and their lack of transparency around what happened with covid19. Now as weve gotten a couple of months past the start of this, really these questions are unanswered. And as i was telling our tennesseans on the phone last night, even as this virus that came out of wuhan, china, they had it in december, it has now touched six continents, and we know that people are dealing with containment, theyre dealing with mitigation, theyre dealing with having, going through the process of getting the antivirals, getting the vaccines that are necessary to deal with covid19. And the questions that people have around this are compounded by the growing realization of how china has chosen not to be honest and not to be transparent in their dealing