Ranking Member's Press

Today, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee held a nomination hearing to consider Dr. Robert Califf to serve as the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In his opening remarks, Ranking Member Richard Burr (R-NC) highlighted the significant role the FDA Commissioner plays during public...

Today, Senator Richard Burr (R-NC), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) introduced the Halt Lethal Trafficking (HALT) Fentanyl Act. This legislation makes permanent the temporary classification of fentanyl analogs under Schedule I of the Controlled...

Today, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee held an executive session to consider the nominations of Lisa Gomez to be the Assistant Secretary for the Employee Benefits Security Administration at the Department of Labor, James Rodriguez to be the Assistant Secretary for Veterans Employment and Training at the...

Today, Senator Richard Burr (R-NC), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, and Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) led a roundtable discussion to hear firsthand how the Democrats’ ill-constructed child care proposal, which is included in their reckless tax-and-spending bill, will devastate existing child...

Senators Richard Burr (R-NC), Tim Scott (R-SC), Susan Collins (R-ME), and other Republican Senators will host a roundtable with child care providers from around the country to hear their concerns about the impact Democrats' reckless spending bill would have on child care workers and families. To watch the event live on December 1st at 10:15 a.m....

Today, Senator Richard Burr (R-NC), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, released a new report with recommendations for strengthening the safety and security of biomedical research laboratories as we continue to build on the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic and historical biosafety...

Today, Senator Mike Crapo (R-ID), Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, and Senator Richard Burr (R-NC), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, released the following joint statement on the vaccine mandate issued by the Biden Administration for Medicare and Medicaid providers: “America’s...

Today, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee held a hearing titled, “Next Steps: The Road Ahead for the COVID-19 Response,” with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the Food and Drug...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Senator Richard Burr (R-NC), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, and Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC), Ranking Member of the House Education and Labor Committee, sent letters to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, U.S. Department of Education Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights...

Today, during a Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee executive session, HELP Committee Republicans pressed for public hearings and transparency on the nearly three-quarters of a trillion dollars the Committee has been tasked with spending through Democrats’ partisan spending package.  The...

Today, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee held an executive session to consider multiple nominations to fill positions at the Department of Labor, Department of Education, AmeriCorps, and the National Mediation Board.  Ranking Member Richard Burr (R-NC) full prepared opening statement: “Thank you for...

Today, Senator Richard Burr (R-NC), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, released the following statement opposing the Senate’s motion to discharge from Committee the nomination of Catherine Lhamon to serve as Assistant Secretary for the Office for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of...

Today, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee held itsnomination hearing for Lisa Gomez to be the Assistant Secretary for Employee Benefits Security at the Department of Labor and Jose Javier Rodriguez to be the Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training at the Department of Labor. Ranking Member Richard...

Today, Senator Richard Burr (R-NC), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, released the following statement on the announcement that Dr. Francis S. Collins will be stepping down as Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) after 12 years in the role: “I can’t say enough about the...

Today, Senator Richard Burr (R-NC), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, released a new report with recommendations for strengthening the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) regulatory readiness, building on lessons learned from the pandemic to better prepare for the...

Today, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee held a hearing titled “School Reopening During COVID-19: Supporting Students, Educators, and Families” with Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona. This is the Committee’s fourth...

Today, Senator Richard Burr (R-NC), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, introduced the NIL Scholarship Tax Act, legislation to protect the integrity of amateur athletics at colleges and universities across the nation. This legislation would allow student-athletes to choose between receiving a...

Today, Senator Richard Burr (R-NC), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, released the following statement on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) recommendations for a Pfizer-BioNTech booster shot: “I’m glad Americans are...

Today, Senator Richard Burr (R-NC), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, released the following statement on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s announcement issuing an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for booster shots of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for high-risk individuals and those over...

Today, Senator Richard Burr (R-NC), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, along with Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Senator Mike Crapo (R-ID), Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, and Senator Roy Blunt (R-MO), Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on...