Washington, D.C. - Today, Rep. Terri Sewell (AL-07) voted in favor of the American Rescue Plan, legislation that will deliver urgently-needed direct relief to the American people. The $1.9 trillion package will provide crucial aid to families, workers, and communities suffering from the health and economic crises caused by COVID-19. 

“Over the past year, our country has faced a harrowing, unprecedented crisis. The coronavirus pandemic and the subsequent economic fallout have reverberated throughout our communities, jeopardizing the health and financial stability of millions of American families,” said Rep. Terri Sewell. “I proudly voted to pass the American Rescue Plan today because Alabama families and workers can no longer wait for relief needed to weather this public health and economic crisis.”

“This bill will provide up to $475 million in direct funding for cities and counties in Alabama’s 7th District, which are in desperate need of funding and resources to fight the pandemic and distribute vaccines. The American Rescue plan also supports working families by providing a direct stimulus payment of $1,400 to individuals,” Sewell continued. “These provisions, along with the creation of a national vaccination plan, the expansion of the Child Tax Credit, the New Markets Tax Credit and Unemployment Benefits, and expanded subsidies for the ACA Marketplace are essential to defeat the virus and Build Back Better.”

Among the bill’s many provisions, it:

• Delivers immediate relief to working families bearing the brunt of the crisis – The bill delivers on the promise to provide $2,000 per person in direct assistance to households across America with checks of $1,400 per person, following the $600 down payment enacted in December. The bill will also provide direct housing assistance, nutrition assistance for 40 million Americans, expand access to safe and reliable child care and affordable health care, extend and expand unemployment insurance so that 18 million American workers can pay their bills and support 27 million children with an expanded Child Tax Credit and 15 million low-wage childless workers through an improved Earned Income Tax Credit. It will also give 27 million workers a raise by raising the federal minimum wage.
• Provides direct financial assistance to cities and counties – The bill would provide desperately needed direct financial assistance to cities and counties in Alabama’s 7^th Congressional District.  Our cities and counties are on the front lines in the fight against the COVID pandemic, and they need more direct assistance to develop local vaccination plans, pay frontline employees overtime and hazard pay, and continue to offer essential services to our families and neighbors.
• Beats the virus and safely reopen schools – The bill will mount a national vaccination plan that includes setting up community vaccination sites nationwide. It will also take complementary measures to combat the virus, including scaling up testing and tracing, addressing shortages of personal protective equipment and other critical supplies, investing in high-quality treatments and addressing health inequities. The plan will also make investments necessary to safely reopen schools.
• Supports communities struggling with the economic fallout – The bill will provide crucial support for the hardest-hit small businesses, especially those owned by entrepreneurs from racial and ethnic backgrounds that have experienced systemic discrimination, with EIDL grants, expanded PPP eligibility and more. The bill also provides crucial resources to protect the jobs of first responders, frontline public health workers, teachers, transit workers and other essential workers that all Americans depend on.
• Provides New Incentives for Medicaid Expansion: The bill provides a new incentive for the 12 states that have not expanded Medicaid to do so by temporarily increasing the base Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) by five percentage points for two years for any state that  expands.  If all 12 remaining states expanded Medicaid, more than 2 million uninsured people would gain access to Medicaid.
• Expands Subsidies in ACA Marketplaces: The bill significantly expands the subsidies in the ACA Marketplaces to cover more middle class families and to be more generous for those already receiving them, for 2021 and 2022.  Specifically, it removes the current cap that makes any family with income above 400% of the poverty level ineligible for any subsidies.  Under the bill, no one will have to pay more than 8.5 percent of their income for a silver plan in the ACA marketplaces. It also provides that individuals below 150% of the poverty level pay no premiums at all compared to 4% of their income currently. The Urban Institute estimates that these provisions could lead to 4.5 million more Americans gaining coverage.
• Provides ACA Subsidies for Those on Unemployment: The bill provides that any individual who receives unemployment at any point in 2021 is treated as if their income were 133% of the poverty level for the purposes of the ACA marketplace subsidy. As a result, they can purchase an ACA silver plan for zero premium.

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