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Dear Friend,
In these unprecedented times, where many businesses are closed or serving their customers under limited operations, I have heard from individuals, families, and business owners across Arizona who are concerned about making ends meet.
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| Watch Senator McSally's Speech by Clicking HERE |
This week, the U.S. Senate voted to help alleviate the economic and financial stress Americans are suffering amid the coronavirus pandemic. One of the main objectives of this bill is to provide money to small businesses to keep employees connected to employers, so we provide 100% forgiven loans to small businesses to maintain employees on the payroll and pay overhead costs to keep their business afloat until we defeat this virus.
Some of the key components of this relief bill include:
Individuals and Small Businesses:
- Money for American families. This comes in the form of a one-time check of $1,200 per individual and $500 per child. These amounts are are reduced for higher income earners, starting at $75,000 for individuals, $112,500 for head of household, and $150,000 for married couples.
- Loosens Rules on Retirement Accounts. Older Americans who are subject to mandatory minimum distributions from their retirement accounts would be able to keep their capital invested instead of being forced to cash out to draw on that capital without penalty. Similarly, the bill also waives the 10% penalty on coronavirus-related early distributions from 401(k)s and IRAs.
- Provides almost $250 billion to Expand Unemployment Benefits.
- Unemployment Benefits for More Americans: The bill will make sure self-employed and independent contractors like Uber drivers can receive unemployment.
- More Money for a Longer Period for More Workers: It also makes benefits more
generous by adding $600 per week on top of what the state normally pays in
unemployment and provides an additional 13 weeks of benefits. And provisions will ensure state and local governments and non-profits can pay unemployment to their employees.
- Paycheck Protection: The bill creates a “paycheck protection program” for small employers, self-employed individuals, and “gig economy” workers to help keep Arizonans employed.
- The “Paycheck Protection Program” will provide 8 weeks of financial assistance through 100 percent federally guaranteed loans to small employers who maintain their payroll during this emergency.
- If the employer maintains payroll, the portion of the loans, which will be available through local banks, used for basic operations, including processing payroll and paying rent, will be converted into a grant and forgiven. This will help workers to remain employed and affected small businesses and our economy to recover quickly from this crisis.
- Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL): The bill increases funding for these loans by up to $10 billion to provide help to small businesses or private, non-profit organizations that suffer substantial economic injury as a result of the declared disaster, like the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Small Business Contractors Also Get Protection: Federal agencies would be required to extend contract performance periods and promptly pay small business contractors impacted by COVID-19.
Health Care:
- Treatment for COVID-19 Patients is a Priority: The bill invests in hospitals,
physicians and other providers putting money into providers’ pockets fast, and pays more for the treatment of COVID-19 patients.
- Unleashes the Full Might of America’s Health Care Sector: The, bill contains a
significant expansion of telehealth by allowing patients to see doctors with whom they don’t already have a relationship, connecting folks on home dialysis with providers, and allowing federally qualified health centers and rural health centers to participate.
- The bill also expands telehealth services for home health and hospice.
- Overburdened physicians need relief, so nurse practitioners and physicians’
assistants will be able to prescribe home health services.
- Eliminates Red Tape for Employers and Individuals: The bill ensures that Americans are able to use all tax-favored health care accounts, like HSAs and FSAs, to buy over-the-counter medicines tax-free without a prescription. In addition, high deductible health care plans with HSAs will now be able to provide coverage predeductible for telehealth services.
I am hopeful that this package will help those who are suffering financially while Americans stay home to flatten the curve of the spread of coronavirus. I urge Nancy Pelosi and the rest of the U.S. House of Representatives to quickly pass this bill and get it to the President's desk.
We will get through this - we are in this together as Arizonans and as Americans.
As always, if there is anything my office can do to help, please don't hesitate to contact us. And if we can do anything to assist you with a problem you might be having with a federal agency, visit my website at this link.
In Service,
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