Following the passage of the Bipartisan Families First Coronavirus Response Act Representative Danny K. Davis issued the following statement:

In response to the Coronavirus pandemic and the inadequate response of the Administration the Majority leadership of the House and the majority members of the relevant committees, including the subcommittee which I chair, the Worker & Family Support  Subcommittee of the Ways and Means Committee, brought to the floor emergency legislation designed to put families first, protect and stabilize our economy, and provide Americans with assurance that this House has their needs and interests at the top of our priority concerns.  As originally written the bill would:

Here is a partial lisitng of what is in the bill as passed:

Emergency Paid Sick Leave in Bipartisan Families First Coronavirus Response Act

• The bipartisan Families First Coronavirus Response Act expands access to emergency paid sick leave to as many as 87 million U.S. workers, according to an analysis by Education and Labor Committee’s Majority staff. Many of these workers currently have no paid leave and are being forced to choose between their paycheck, their health, and the health of the people around them.  This is a critical step toward protecting families’ financial security and mitigating the spread of the coronavirus.
  • A vast majority of these workers would receive full pay for two weeks – or 80 hours – of missed work that is related to the coronavirus.

• The White House and Congressional Republicans were unified against any bill that included universal paid sick leave and family and medical leave.  Workers and families across the country do not have time for a stalemate.  House Democrats made a difficult decision to provide emergency paid sick leave to tens of millions of U.S. workers rather than to no one at all.

• While 89 percent of large private-sector employers already offer paid sick leave, many small- and medium-sized employers do not.  The bipartisanFamilies First Coronavirus Response Act provides emergency paid sick leave to the workers who are least likely to have it.
  • Many large employers, including Walmart, McDonald's, Apple, and others, have already updated and strengthened their paid sick leave policies in response to COVID-19.

• Every employer that provides paid leave under this bill will be fully reimbursed for the cost in no more than three months.  This bill will benefit small businesses by helping them keep their workers healthy without taking on any additional costs. 

• This is a temporary measure in response to the coronavirus.  House Democrats will continue to fight for permanent legislation that secures access to paid sick and family and medical leave for every U.S. worker.