Watch Kennedy’s comments here.

WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) called for a vote on the SAVE America Act in a speech on the U.S. Senate floor.

Key excerpts of the speech are below:

“Let me tell you what I think of when I think of the SAVE Act. I think of integrity in American elections.

“Now, you don’t have to be a senior at Caltech to know that the American people, no matter what your political philosophy is—Democrat, Republican, independent, socialist, communist, whatever—you wonder with elections now. You wonder about the integrity.

“I mean, I don’t know how widespread, if at all, this is, but in New Jersey we just discovered that the entire population of Bolivia is registered to vote in New Jersey. That’s a bit of an overstatement, but after saying there’s no problem with our vote rolls, we discover stuff like this.”

. . .

“Look, if America’s going to survive, in terms of your party, you’ve got to be willing to lose and accept that you lost. In order to do that, you’ve got to trust in the election. So, when I think of the SAVE Act, I’m thinking of election integrity." 

 . . .

“We have a budget resolution that was sent over to us by the House. A budget resolution can only deal with money. And I think we should take it up. . . . And I think part of it needs to be election integrity.”

. . .

“But we can’t do it unless we can vote. And it would be nice if we could all agree. It would be nice if we can all have meetings, talk about it, give and take. I’m all for that. But right now, it’s not realistic, because people have differences of opinion. You know what you do when you have a difference of opinion? You vote. That’s why God made votes. That’s why God made the United States Senate.”

Watch Kennedy’s speech here.  

WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) joined Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) in introducing the bipartisan Increasing Mental Health Options Act to eliminate outdated Medicare rules that delay mental health treatment for seniors and improve access to behavioral health care.

Current Medicare rules require psychologists to obtain a physician’s approval before providing services in certain treatment settings, creating unnecessary delays for patients seeking care. This bipartisan legislation would remove that outdated requirement while preserving existing requirements for psychologists to coordinate and consult with patients’ physicians. The bill would also encourage psychologists to serve rural and underserved communities by making them eligible for Medicare bonus payments in mental health professional shortage areas.

“Medicare patients should not have to jump through hoops to get mental health treatment. Our bill will cut needless red tape so psychologists can treat patients sooner, especially in rural communities where mental health professionals are in short supply,” said Kennedy.

“New Mexicans should have access to timely, high-quality mental healthcare whenever and wherever they need it. By expanding Medicare-covered treatment settings and encouraging more psychologists to practice where they're needed most, my Increasing Mental Health Options Act will help Medicare patients get the care they need sooner, in their home community. This is a commonsense step to ensure every New Mexican can get the mental healthcare they need, close to home,” said Heinrich.

"One in three newly admitted nursing home residents arrives already struggling with depression or anxiety, yet their path to timely help is often blocked by an outdated Medicare provision. Current Medicare rules prohibit psychologists from working with patients in skilled nursing facilities, partial hospitalization programs, and similar settings until treatment is approved by a physician, needlessly delaying care. APA Services applauds Congresswoman Malliotakis and Senator Heinrich for introducing the bipartisan Increasing Mental Health Options Act to remove this barrier to prompt, effective treatment,” said Arthur C. Evans, Jr., PhD, CEO of the American Psychological Association

Background:

The Increasing Mental Health Options Act would:

• Allow psychologists to independently provide Medicare-covered services in all treatment settings without first obtaining unnecessary physician approval.
• Make psychologists eligible for Medicare bonus payments when they provide services in communities with shortages of mental health professionals.
• Maintain existing requirements for psychologists to consult and coordinate with patients’ physicians when appropriate.

The bill would not expand psychologists’ scope of practice, change state licensing laws, alter the services Medicare covers or modify existing physician consultation requirements.

Full text of the Increasing Mental Health Options Act is available here.

WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced $6,637,673 in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funding to help Louisiana communities continue recovering from Hurricanes Laura and Francine.

“Louisianians know how to weather a storm, rebuild what was lost and help their neighbors get back on their feet. This $6.6 million will help our communities recover from Hurricanes Laura and Francine and keep moving forward,” said Kennedy.

The FEMA aid will fund the following:

• $2,218,977 to the City of Lake Charles for boardwalks, docks and piers as a result of Hurricane Laura.
  
  
• $944,885 to Terrebonne Parish to fund costs related to the management of Public Assistance grants as a result of Hurricane Francine.
  
  
• $912,805 to Morgan City to fund emergency electrical power restorations to lessen immediate threat to public health, safety and property as a result of Hurricane Francine.
  
  
• $689,190 to South Louisiana Electric Cooperative Association to fund emergency protective measures to lessen immediate threat to public health, safety and property as a result of Hurricane Francine.
  
  
• $552,131 to the City of Sulphur to fund emergency protective measures to lessen the immediate threat to public health and safety as a result of Hurricane Laura.
  
  
• $455,346 to the City of Lake Charles to fund lakefront sidewalks, riprap, fencing and other related components repairs or replacements as a result of Hurricane Laura.
  
  
• $403,835 to the City of Sulphur to fund building and equipment repairs or replacements as a result of Hurricane Laura.
  
  
• $202,872 to Morgan City to fund lift stations and other related components emergency repairs or replacements as a result of Hurricane Francine.
  
  
• $150,536 to the Riverside Baptist Church of Lake Charles to fund contents replacement as a result of Hurricane Laura.
  
  
• $107,097 to Morgan City to fund signage repair or replacement as a result of Hurricane Francine.

Watch Kennedy’s comments here.

WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today explained how the One Big Beautiful Bill’s provision to require able-bodied Americans on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program—commonly known as food stamps—to work, volunteer or attend school part time has helped protect the program for those who need it most in a speech on the U.S. Senate floor.

Key excerpts of the speech are below: 

“Last year, we passed the One Big Beautiful Bill. One of the provisions of the One Big Beautiful Bill was that we, in America, if you’re hungry, we’re going to feed you. We’re going to give you food stamps. We don’t want you to be hungry. But in return for those food stamps, if you’re able-bodied, if you’re not disabled, and you don’t have kids at home, you got to go get a job. You got to work 20 hours a week or go to school for 20 hours a week or do community service for 20 hours a week. Fair trade. 

“We said, ‘We don’t want to take food stamps away from people who need them. We want fewer people to need food stamps.’ And it’s working. 

“And the full provision of the law is not even implemented. But so far, we have had four million people who were on food stamps . . . who have either decided they don’t need food stamps, because they didn’t want to work, or they’ve gone to work for a living, and they no longer need food stamps.”

. . .

“When you say you have to work to get food stamps, and four million people say, we’re off the food stamp rolls, one of two things have happened: You either really didn’t need the food stamps, or you went to work, and you didn’t need the food stamps. And we’re going to have an even more meaningful impact as more and more states implement the work requirement. 

“It was long overdue. We ought to extend it to every social program in America.

“And I’m not talking about—and we weren’t talking about—taking food away from a mother with a sick child in her arms. This rule just applies to able-bodied people who aren’t disabled, who aren’t elderly, and who don’t have kids at home. And all we require is they work 20 hours a week, or go to school for 20 hours a week and get job training, or do community service. It’s working.”

Watch Kennedy’s speech here.