Eb-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022

Floor Speech

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Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, I will be very brief. There are two reasons why Senators should vote against the Lee anti-vaccination amendment that affects our dedicated healthcare workers and our superlative military.

First, vaccines for healthcare workers protects the most vulnerable, particularly seniors and those with chronic illness. Three in four COVID deaths in America were seniors. Two hundred thousand were people living in long-term care. Vulnerable people are safer when their homes, hospitals, and doctors' offices are safe. Furthermore, flu shot requirements for healthcare workers were already common. Health workers know vaccinations are part of the job.

Turning to the Armed Forces, I am simply going to quote the letter General Milley wrote with respect to the vaccination requirement. Here is General Milley:

We need each and every Soldier, Sailor, Airmen, Marine and Guardian healthy and capable of performing our duties. COVID- 19 is a threat to force protection and readiness.

General Milley went on to say:

With this in mind, the Secretary of Defense intends to mandate vaccinations for all Servicemembers.

And then he makes it clear:

The Joint Force medical professionals recommended this as a necessary step to sustain our readiness and protect our force, our coworkers, our families, and our communities.

For these reasons, when we get a chance to vote on the Lee anti- vaccination amendment affecting healthcare workers in the military, I urge my colleagues to oppose the Lee amendment.

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