Washington, DC— Please credit the following statement to New Orleans Mayor and President of the U.S. Conference of Mayors Mitch Landrieu:
“Today’s score by the Congressional Budget Office confirms what mayors of both parties have maintained as wave after wave of unworkable legislation has emerged from the Senate this year. No responsible elected leader would walk away from the healthcare needs of 32 million Americans — this proposal is a nonstarter with Republican and Democratic mayors alike and should be unacceptable to lawmakers at any level. It’s time that Washington stopped prioritizing partisan showdowns and put people first, by partnering with mayors and governors from both parties to craft legislation that will cure what ails our healthcare system, better protects seniors and gives cities and towns the tools we desperately need to fight the opioid epidemic.
“To that end, we are repeating our call for Senate leadership to hit pause and start fresh with local and state level counterparts at the table. As a first step towards a law that will create stronger, healthier communities, we are calling again for a bipartisan working group that partners Senators with the mayors and governors who are closest to the people affected by sweeping changes to our healthcare system