Today, President Trump signed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act into law.
Physicians for Reproductive Health Board Chair Dr. Kristyn Brandi issued the following statement:
“The Families First Act is a groundbreaking, critical first step in providing families and communities with the resources they need at this unprecedented time. Thank you to the leadership in Congress and tireless work of advocates to make this a reality.
“The Act provides temporary emergency paid sick, family, and medical leave to support all of us through this crisis, especially those most in need. It increases support for unemployment insurance, food assistance programs, and free testing for the virus – all critical resources to ensuring we can focus on the safety of our communities and not on how we’re going to feed our families.
We call on political leadership… to keep our health care workers safe.
“In this time of uncertainty, we must continue coming together to ensure that no matter where we live, how much we make, or what our families look like, our basic needs are met. Some ways we can all come together as a community to protect each other is to continue practicing social distancing, washing our hands, and following the specific the restrictions of our local areas.
“We also want to continue providing support to the health care workers who are valiantly putting their lives on the line to care for the sick and stop the spread of this virus. We call on political leadership to secure more protective gear, respirators, and coronavirus tests to keep our health care workers safe.
We’re stronger, braver, and better that way.
“We will continue facing new challenges in this fight to curtail the outbreak. It is our job as community members, as patients, as physicians, as advocates, and as compassionate human beings to do all we can to face this head on, together. We’re stronger, braver, and better that way.”