Maloney: “This is a national crisis”

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NEWBURGH – Democratic and Republican leaders and the White House are hunkered down in Washington trying to negotiate a new stimulus bill, but the ongoing talks, without any resolve, are spreading anxiety at home.

Enhanced unemployment benefits have expired along with eviction moratoriums, and there is fear of a coming national economic catastrophe.

Governor Cuomo, however, said Thursday that he has just signed a law preventing evictions in New York as long as COVID-19 exists.

“I am proud of the response in the early days of the pandemic. It was a bipartisan approach that has kept millions of families from suffering than they are now,” said Congressman Sean Patrick Maloney (D, NY-18), “But we’re at a critical moment, and the federal government needs to step up.”

Maloney was in Newburgh Thursday to discuss his frustration at Cornerstone Health Care, which has lost millions of dollars since the COVID-19 pandemic upended American life nearly five months ago and kept people home away from their health providers.

‘We’ve been outside of the stimulus bills for the other three,” said Linda Muller, Cornerstone’s CEO, “and this is critically important for us as we try to figure out how to get out of the financial issues we are experiencing because of the COVID-19.”

Cornerstone will lose its continued funding in November without more financial support, but Muller said care has continued through the pandemic – despite so much financial uncertainty.

“The whole health of our health center system is in jeopardy,” said Muller. “We’re committed to our mission and to our communities.”

Hospitals have been put into a financial bind because elective surgeries were forbidden during the last few months. They have since resumes. State and local governments have been hurt by decreased tax revenue, and the services they need to provide, including the funding of public schools, could be in jeopardy because of the current federal inaction.

“We will see layoffs and catastrophic cuts in services.  Community health centers like Cornerstone will have to shut their doors because they won’t be able to financially survive without federal help, and that’s true of hospitals as well,” said Maloney. “This is a national crisis, and we need to treat it that way.”

 




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