Congressman García’s Statement on the CDC Weakening Protections for Health Care Workers Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Congressman Jesús "Chuy" García (IL-04) released the following statement after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) weakened protections for health care workers. The changes include rolling back personal protective equipment (PPE) standards and allowing paper surgical masks to be used in place of N-95 respirators.

"We need to keep everyone in our communities safe, and that starts with our health care workers on the front lines of an outbreak. Nurses, doctors, lab techs, caregivers and other health workers are in direct contact with ill patients. Failing to provide health care personnel with adequate protection endangers their lives and increases the risk that the virus will spread.

"COVID-19 is a public health emergency of unknown proportions. It is more important than ever to ensure our workers are prepared and protected. The Trump Administration and the CDC must stop cutting corners and put worker and patient safety first.

"Trump has already demonstrated an inability to take this public health crisis seriously by peddling false and misleading claims about the virus. This Administration has completely blundered the response to the coronavirus. The federal government must take aggressive and strategic steps to protect health care workers and the families they serve."

Congressman García is also a cosponsor of Ed and Labor Chairman "Bobby" Scott's (VA-03) COVID-19 Health Care Worker Protection Act of 2020 (H.R. 6139).

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