Working for the Ninth District
Dear Friend,
After a busy weekend in Memphis where I showed 40 Frayser Elementary Summer Freedom School students around my district office and participated in several other events, I flew back to Washington to continue working for the Ninth District in Congress. This week, the House adopted my amendment to help students better understand their financial options and the obligations associated with their students loans, I joined dozens of my colleagues to launch the State Medicaid Expansion Caucus aimed at pressuring conservative governors to expand health coverage to our nation’s most needy, and I announced millions of dollars in federal funding for Memphis. Keep reading to learn more about what happened over the past week.
Working to Expand Medicaid to Tennessee’s Neediest Citizens
Welcoming Memphians to my Capitol Hill Office in Washington
Helping Students Better Understand the Risks of High-Interest Private Student Loans
Grants for Memphis
Promoting Trade Partnerships for Memphis
Facebook Photo Contest
President Obama Seeking Mentors for Young People
Make Sure to Claim Unclaimed Property
Working to Expand Medicaid to Tennessee’s Neediest Citizens
On Wednesday, I joined Congressmen Hank Johnson from Georgia and G. K. Butterfield from North Carolina and many others to help launch our new Congressional State Medicaid Expansion Caucus. Our Caucus will focus on highlighting the need for all governors and state legislatures—including Tennessee—to expand their Medicaid systems as prescribed by President Obama’s Affordable Care Act. A recent White House Council of Economic Advisors report shows that 234,000 Tennesseans who would be eligible for health insurance coverage under our state’s Medicaid program, TennCare, will not be covered in 2016 and that more than 40,000 residents will face financial hardship, many catastrophically, as a result of not being covered by an expanded TennCare program.
By not expanding Medicaid, governors around the country—and at home in Tennessee—are sending a message that they have little concern for the neediest, sickest, and most desperate of their constituents. While this may not be Governor Haslam’s intention, the reality of the situation is that almost a quarter of a million of our state’s most needy are going or will go without the health coverage that they need and that President Obama’s health care reform law says they should have. Studies have even shown that thousands of Americans each year will die avoidable deaths because of lack of access to Medicaid. That is unacceptable.
If Arizona Governor Jan Brewer—with the recalcitrant legislature she has in her state—can do it, Governor Haslam can do it, too. It is immoral for our state to not provide this basic necessity to those who need it desperately, especially when the vast majority of the cost is covered by the Affordable Care Act.
I remain committed to ensuring that all Tennesseans are able to take advantage of the important protections made available by the President’s landmark Affordable Care Act, and I am proud to have joined so many of my colleagues in calling on every governor to do the right thing, take swift action, and expand Medicaid for the good of our country’s citizens.
Welcoming Memphians to my Capitol Hill Office in Washington
Ever since I first arrived in Congress, I have made every effort to make my Capitol Hill office as welcoming as can be to the citizens of the Ninth District. This week, I enjoyed the opportunity to show Sky Hamilton and her daughter Raiah as well as Daniel and Jeannette Saulsberry, Cedric Henderson, Jr., Tyler Hunter, and several others around my Capitol Hill office.
Helping Students Better Understand the Risks of High-Interest Private Student Loans
This week, the House of Representatives passed the “Empowering Students Through Enhanced Counseling Act” to provide upfront, on-going counseling and information on financial aid options and student debt risks so that they can make better, more informed choices about how they finance their educations. While debating the bill, I am pleased that the House also included an amendment I wrote to ensure that during this counseling before accepting a loan, students are informed that even if their financial situation becomes so desperate that they are forced to declare bankruptcy, their federal and private student loans may not be dischargeable and could follow them for life. You can watch me speaking in support of my amendment here.
Under current law, a borrower must show that continuing to pay back their loans would impose an “undue hardship” on them and their dependents—a standard that in practice is nearly insurmountable. The intense difficulty that students and student loan borrowers may face when seeking “undue hardship” bankruptcy relief was starkly outlined in a New York Times report published earlier this year. I have also sponsored a bill to change the bankruptcy code to allow certain loans to be dischargeable in bankruptcy, but as Congress considers my bill, I am glad that the House voted to ensure student loan borrowers understand the risks associated with their debt.
On Wednesday, the University of Memphis was awarded several grants from the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT), including $458,830 to help make Walker Avenue more pedestrian-friendly and walkable. Earlier this year, I wrote a letter to the TDOT Commissioner in support of this grant funding, and I am glad that the funds were made available for this project.
I also announced this week more than $3 million in funding for research projects at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis as well as a new grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to help support the Memphis Heritage Trail. You can read more about that grant here.
Promoting Trade Partnerships for Memphis
This week, ahead of the first ever United States-Africa Leaders Summit hosted by President Obama, I wrote to Presidents Jacob Zuma of South Africa and Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya requesting that they meet with Memphian Anthony “Amp” Elmore to discuss his proposal to develop new cultural and economic ties with Memphis. The Summit aims to strengthen economic ties with our African partners and highlight our longstanding commitment to cooperation. I support opening new channels for partnerships that would initiate cultural exchanges while boosting Memphis’ economy, and I hope that Presidents Zuma and Kenyatta will give Amp’s request consideration.
I’m updating my Facebook cover photo—and my next one could be a photo that you took! If you have a great photo that represents the Ninth District and you'd like to have it highlighted on my Facebook page, please click the link below to send it to me. I'll post the best photos sent in an album next week, and anyone who "likes" my page will be able to vote to choose which photo will be my next cover photo.
President Obama Seeking Mentors for Young People
It is important that all children can count on caring adults who are engaged in their lives, but too many young people lack this important support. That’s why President Obama is calling on Americans to sign up as long-term mentors to young people through his new “My Brother’s Keeper” initiative. The President is seeking people from all walks of life who want to develop sustained and direct mentoring relationships that will play vital roles in the lives of young people in Memphis and around the country. If you are interested in signing up to help young adults in our city stay on track, you can do so here.
Make Sure to Claim Unclaimed Property
The State of Tennessee maintains a searchable database of unclaimed property, which can include bank accounts, stocks and dividends, wages, refunds, insurance payments, gift certificates, credit balances and overpayments, and a number of other things. There is no cost for accessing the database, and you may find that you are owed money or property. If you have not searched the database yet or if you haven’t searched in a while, you can visit https://www.claimittn.gov and see for yourself whether the state is holding any property or assets for you. And you may pass this information along to your friends and family as well!
As always, I remain.
Most sincerely,
Steve Cohen
Member of Congress