Pallone on Biden’s First Joint Address to Congress

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) issued the following statement tonight on President Biden’s first Joint Address to Congress:

“During his first 100 days in office President Biden has accomplished a tremendous amount to crush COVID-19 and provide relief to struggling families, including the largest expansion of health care coverage in more than a decade. Thanks to President Biden’s determined and steadfast leadership, the nation surpassed 200 million vaccines last week, which is a major achievement that will help us soon return to normal patterns of life.

“Tonight, the President made clear that there is a lot of work left to do.  He outlined ambitious plans – many of which he had unveiled over the last month – and asked for Congress’ support in making them law.

“I look forward to working with the President to make health care and prescription drugs more affordable. President Biden plans to build on the Affordable Care Act by making monthly health care premium reductions permanent, which will lower health care costs for millions of Americans. He also committed to giving the federal government the ability to negotiate lower prescription drug costs, a key provision in the drug pricing legislation that I and other Democratic Health leaders introduced last week.

“Every American has a right to safe drinking water. I strongly support President Biden’s plan to replace 100% of the nation’s lead pipes and service lines. In my home state of New Jersey, Newark is proof that we can get the lead out quickly when we make money available.

“President Biden is also positioning our nation to not only compete on the global stage but to lead the pack when it comes to acting on the climate crisis and modernizing our infrastructure. His plans align with both the Energy and Commerce Committee Democrat’s LIFT America Act and CLEAN Future Act, which will rebuild our economy, create millions of new good-paying American jobs, and combat the climate crisis by reducing carbon pollution and moving us towards a clean energy future. We must act on climate and put millions of Americans back to work, and that’s exactly what these proposals do.”