“Every so often, Washington actually saves taxpayer dollars instead of watching that money circle the bureaucratic drain. Today, the Senate made the commonsense move to pass the Stopping Improper Payments to Deceased People Act . . . I hope the House quickly sends this bipartisan solution to the president’s desk.”

WASHINGTON – Today the Senate passed the Stopping Improper Payments to Deceased People Act, which Sens. John Kennedy (R-La.) and Tom Carper (D-Del.) introduced in May 2019. The bill would save billions of federal taxpayer dollars by curbing erroneous government payments to people who are deceased.

Last week, the U.S. Government Accountability Office reported that the U.S. Treasury sent more than 1 million coronavirus stimulus payments—worth approximately $1.4 billion—to dead people.

“Every so often, Washington actually saves taxpayer dollars instead of watching that money circle the bureaucratic drain. Today, the Senate made the commonsense move to pass the Stopping Improper Payments to Deceased People Act, and I’m thankful for Sen. Carper’s leadership in helping our bill cross the finish line. I’m also grateful for the work Finance Committee Chairman Grassley did to save billions in taxpayer money from flowing to ghosts. Americans need those resources to save and improve lives, and I hope the House quickly sends this bipartisan solution to the president’s desk,” said Kennedy.

Background: 

The Social Security Administration (SSA) maintains the most complete federal database of individuals who are reported to have died. However, only a small number of federal agencies have access to this official list, and most federal agencies rely on a slimmed down, incomplete and less timely version of the death information. 

In addition, most inspectors general lack access to the complete death information. As a result, many federal agencies make erroneous payments to people who are actually deceased.

The Stopping Improper Payments to Deceased People Act has several key provisions, including:

• Allowing federal agencies access to the complete death database. Under current law, only federal agencies that directly manage programs making beneficiary payments have access to complete death data. The bill would allow all appropriate federal agencies to have access to the complete record of death data in order to promote public safety and accuracy in distributing benefits.
• Requiring agencies to use death data to curb improper payments. The legislation would require federal agencies to use this death data in order to curb improper payments and reduce waste and fraud that occur when agencies send taxpayer money to people who are no longer living.
• Improving the death data. The legislation would establish procedures to ensure more accurate death data. For example, the bill requires the SSA to screen for “extremely elderly” individuals, as a 2015 Inspector General Report identified 6.5 million people who were listed as living despite the fact that they were all recorded as being more than 112 years old.

“It’s disappointing to see the Supreme Court add to the misguided legacy of Roe v. Wade by striking down a Louisiana law that fundamentally protects women. . . . We can’t deny our responsibility to protect all lives, no matter how loudly the abortion industry insists that baseline standards of medical care don’t apply to them.”

WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) released the following statement upon the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in June Medical Services v. Russo.

“Louisianians and Americans understand that every life is valuable, whether it’s 82 years old or 82 seconds old. It’s disappointing to see the Supreme Court add to the misguided legacy of Roe v. Wade by striking down a Louisiana law that fundamentally protects women.

“States should be able to put basic health and safety laws in place to safeguard people from the deficient care that abortion clinics too often offer them. We can’t deny our responsibility to protect all lives, no matter how loudly the abortion industry insists that baseline standards of medical care don’t apply to them.

“I have always been proud of Louisianians’ steadfast commitment to protecting life. Unborn babies are the most innocent and defenseless people in our communities, and I’ll keep fighting for the life and health of every person, including vulnerable women and children.” 

This January, Kennedy introduced the Pregnant Women Health and Safety Act to ensure women have access to immediate medical care nationwide. The bill would require abortion providers to have admitting privileges at a hospital located within 15 miles of the medical office where the abortion occurs. The legislation would also require abortion providers to inform patients of where they can receive follow-up care for any complications arising from abortion procedures.

“Through Louisiana’s Department of Health and Tulane University, this HHS funding will help promote the good health of children and seniors in our state.”

WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced $5,565,847 in funding from the Department of Health and Human Services to help support multiple health care projects in Louisiana.

“Through Louisiana’s Department of Health and Tulane University, this HHS funding will help promote the good health of children and seniors in our state,” said Kennedy.

Projects supported by this funding include:

• $3,822,883 to the Louisiana Department of Health for immunization projects and vaccines for children.

• $1,363,080 to the Louisiana Department of Health for the Louisiana Tobacco Control Program.

• $379,884 to Tulane University for its predictive modeling of how the coronavirus progresses in older patients.

“Now is the time for both chambers of Congress to ensure that firms beholden to Communist China finally let U.S. regulators examine their books—to stop them from swindling American investors.”

WASHINGTON – Sens. John Kennedy (R-La.) and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) have introduced the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The bill passed the Senate unanimously this May.

Kennedy and Van Hollen introduced the legislation to protect American investors and their retirement savings from foreign companies that have been operating on U.S. stock exchanges while flouting Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) oversight.

“Every day that lawmakers fail to act gives fraudulent Chinese companies the chance to continue exploiting hardworking Americans. The Senate has already endorsed this bill unanimously, and it has the SEC’s support as well. Now is the time for both chambers of Congress to ensure that firms beholden to Communist China finally let U.S. regulators examine their books—to stop them from swindling American investors,” said Kennedy.

“From retirement accounts to their children’s savings plans, many Americans rely on investments to support their futures. But for too long, investors have not been provided accurate or timely information from Chinese companies registered on U.S. exchanges—costing Americans dearly. Publicly listed companies should all be held to the same standards, and our proposal would ensure that. I’m glad this provision has already passed the Senate with unanimous support, I urge my colleagues to get this done,” said Van Hollen.

Sens. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Rick Scott (R-Fla.) have cosponsored the NDAA amendment.

The Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act prohibits securities of a company from being listed on any of the U.S. securities exchanges if the company has failed to comply with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board’s (PCAOB) audits for three years in a row.

The bill would also require public companies to disclose whether they are owned or controlled by a foreign government, including China’s communist government. 

Many Americans invest in U.S. stock exchanges as part of their retirement savings, and dishonest companies operating on the exchanges put Americans at risk. This legislation protects the interest of American investors by ensuring that foreign companies traded in America are subject to the same independent audit requirements that apply to American companies.

Background:

Congress established the PCAOB to inspect audits of public companies, ensuring the information companies provide to the public is accurate, independent and trustworthy.

Currently, China’s communist government refuses to allow the PCAOB to inspect audits of companies registered in China and Hong Kong. Such companies represent a keen risk to American investors as nearly 11 percent of all securities class action lawsuits in 2011 were brought against Chinese-owned companies accused of misrepresenting themselves in financial documents.

According to the SEC, 224 U.S.-listed companies are located in countries where there are obstacles to PCAOB inspections. These companies have a combined market capitalization of more than $1.8 trillion.

In the last 10 years, the number of Chinese companies listed on U.S. stock exchanges has increased significantly, as those firms take advantage of the capital available in America.