Hi folks! Welcome back to Tammy Tuesdays, our weekly update email on Tammy’s work and the big fights she’s taking on for Wisconsin families.
Tammy knows that there’s more that unites us than divides us. She understands that Wisconsin’s working families all want good-paying jobs, affordable healthcare, and the same freedoms their parents and grandparents had.
Read below for highlights of what Tammy worked on this week:
Standing Up for Wisconsin Workers
Tammy is so proud of Wisconsin workers, who do so much to keep our Made in Wisconsin economy going strong and our state moving forward. Tammy also knows that Wisconsin workers are some of the best in the world who can make anything: paper, engines, tools, ships, beer, brats, cheese, and more. For all that our workers do for our state and our country, Tammy promises that she’s always going to work hard to create more job opportunities, support workers’ rights, and protect our workers’ hard-earned benefits.
This Labor Day, Tammy was proud to honor our workers, unions, and Wisconsin’s history as a Midwest pro-union stronghold at the Milwaukee Laborfest. After walking in the Labor Day parade with IBEW, Tammy met with union workers at Laborfest and highlighted all the work they’ve accomplished together including restoring pensions and creating good-paying, union jobs in Wisconsin. Tammy knows that there is more work to be done and she’s going to keep working hard until all of our workers and unions have the support that they expect and deserve.
Supporting Wisconsin Jobs & Innovation
Tammy knows that Wisconsin isn’t called the Forward state just for any reason. Time and again, Wisconsin leads the country in whatever we do, from health care and manufacturing to our public universities and agricultural industries. Tammy is always going to work hard to make sure Wisconsin lives up to its proud namesake. That’s why last year, Tammy helped pass the CHIPS and Science Act, which is providing historic investments in American manufacturing, regional technology hubs, and our second to none manufacturing workforce.
Right now, multiple Wisconsin health technology companies, nonprofits and higher education institutions are seeking to create one of the regional technology hubs funded by the CHIPS and Science Act. Tammy is lobbying the Biden-Harris administration to select Wisconsin for a technology hub, which would focus on personalized medicine including specific cancer treatments. Having this regional technology hub in Wisconsin would advance the state’s biohealth sector, create good-paying jobs, strengthen supply chains, and establish Wisconsin as a leader in innovative medical care. Tammy knows that Wisconsin is a leader in whatever we do and she is always going to work hard to do right by our proud Wisconsin job industries and workers.
Lowering Prescription Drug Costs
Tammy believes that every single Wisconsinite deserves affordable health care. When she heard from Wisconsinites that they were having to ration life saving prescription drugs, or sacrifice them completely in order to pay their bills and groceries, Tammy took action. Last year, she took on Big Pharma and helped pass the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) that gives Medicare the power to negotiate lower prescription drug prices and cap insulin costs at $35 a month for our seniors.
And last week, the Biden-Harris administration announced the first ten drugs that were selected for the Medicare price negotiation. Following this first rollout, Medicare will negotiate prices for up to 60 drugs over the next four years, and up to an additional 20 drugs every year after that. Tammy was proud to support the IRA, but knows that there’s still more work to be done. And she’s going to keep fighting until every Wisconsinite has access to the affordable health care they expect and deserve.
Expanding Life Saving Health Care
So many Wisconsinites have had their lives touched by the heartbreaking effects of cancer in some way or another. Tammy understands this and believes that in order to save lives, we need to expand access to affordable, lifesaving health care. Recently, Tammy has been working hard to pass bipartisan legislation that stops health insurance companies from increasing out-of-pocket costs for new oral cancer treatment medications. She’s also working to reauthorize the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP), which provides breast and cervical cancer screening and diagnostic services for women who are low-income, uninsured, and do not qualify for Medicaid.
On Thursday, Tammy welcomed the First Lady of the United States, Dr. Jill Biden to build on these current legislative efforts and the White House Cancer Moonshot’s program to prevent cancer. Tammy and Dr. Biden visited Exact Sciences, a Wisconsin based company that has been a global leader in early-stage cancer detection research. And afterwards they partook in a conversation at the Foundation for Black Women’s Wellness, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting and raising the visibility of Black women’s health. The conversation was centered around expanding access to cancer screenings and treatment. Tammy will always work hard to make sure that each and every American has access to the lifesaving health care they deserve and is proud to be working alongside Dr. Biden in the fight against cancer.
Honoring Wisconsin Veterans
Wisconsin is the proud home of servicemembers, veterans, and military families who have made incredible sacrifices for our country. And since our veterans put their lives on the line to keep us safe and free, Tammy believes that we must do all that we can to support them and honor their contributions toward our nation’s freedom.
Following years of bipartisan legislative efforts from Tammy and other Wisconsin lawmakers, the New Richmond post office was officially renamed to honor two World War II veterans from the area. The “Captain Robert C. Harmon and Private John R. Peirson Post Office Building” honors the New Richmond natives who were half-brothers and died in combat protecting our freedoms. Tammy is committed to working with anyone and for however long in order to do right by our veterans and ensure they are receiving the respect and support they deserve.
