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As the U.S. Senate returns to Washington for what is
known as a "lame duck" session, I am preparing for
what will surely be an 11th hour sprint
to conclude lingering legislative business. I will
be focusing on major issues of concern to Mainers
and all Americans, particularly those needing
immediate action like passing the remaining
appropriations bill and increasing funding for the
Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program. I also
believe the Congress must vote on the final
conference report to comprehensively reform our
nation’s intelligence community. These bills are
critical for our entire nation, and should be
considered before the 108th Congress
adjourns.
As the cold winter months quickly approach, we
must secure additional funding for the Low Income
Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) which
provides vital assistance for those in most need.
Last year alone, 45,000 Maine households were able
to meet their home energy needs with help from
LIHEAP. Working with Senator James Jeffords (I-VT),
I will work to increase the annual funding for
LIHEAP from $2.0 billion to $3.4 billion for the
next three fiscal years. I remain committed to
protecting the long-term strength of this essential
program which keeps hundreds of families in Maine
and across the nation warm through the harsh cold.
As LIHEAP is most critical during the winter
months, another issue needing immediate attention is
equally seasonal. This year's devastating flu
shortage illustrates, once again, the vulnerability
of a system with few sources for critical drugs and
vaccines. I have called upon the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services to not only evaluate
international sources for additional flu vaccine,
but to also allocate our available doses to the
states appropriately so that those with a greater
proportion of their population in the high risk
groups established by the Centers for Disease
Control (CDC) will receive vaccine. I have
encouraged the CDC to work together with our experts
at the NIH and FDA to leave no stone unturned in
order to assure that we obtain the maximum possible
protection from the vaccine available. I have also
joined with Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) and others in
the Senate to enact legislation to assure that the
response of our government improves, and even more
important, we will work together to address the
conditions that lead to this crisis.
The flu vaccine shortage, however, raises an
opportunity to address the over-arching issue of
prescription drug importation. Joining with Senator
Byron Dorgan (D-ND), we introduced bipartisan
legislation, "The Pharmaceutical Market Access and
Drug Safety Act" to allow the safe, regulated
importation of prescription drugs from Canada within
90 days of enactment, and from additional
industrialized countries after one year. I am
working closely with Senator Dorgan and our 30
Senate colleagues who cosponsored this bill in
securing consideration - and passage - of drug
importation legislation by the full Senate.
Americans should no longer have to cross
international borders to purchase affordable
prescription drugs - drugs that frequently come from
the very same manufacturing plants.
Finally, I will continue to work with my
colleagues in the appropriations process to ensure
that vital funding for initiatives in Maine are
included in the final bills sent to the President.
Currently, the President has signed four of the
mandatory thirteen appropriations bills into law,
with critical funding for veterans, housing
initiatives, small business programs, transportation
improvements, energy and water projects, and
agricultural programs still unfinished. We must take
a bipartisan approach to build the consensus to
complete the remaining fiscal year 2005
appropriations in the few remaining days before
prior to adjournment,
These are just some of the major issues I will
focus on when the Senate returns. As the saying
goes, the unpredictability of the Senate is the only
thing that is predictable -- so I will continue to
take an active role in legislation that rightly
reflects the views and priorities of Maine.
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