VIDEO: Capito Chairs Labor-H Subcommittee Hearing on HHS Budget

To watch Chairman Capito's questioning, click here or the image above.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS), participated in a hearing with U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to consider President Trump's Fiscal Year (FY) 2027 budget request, as well as the many priorities of the agency.

HIGHLIGHTS:

ON THE IMPORTANCE OF NIOSH (THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH):

Chairman Capito:

"Let me ask you about NIOSH, because you know, and I know that this is very important to the coal miners and firefighters of West Virginia. The investment for NIOSH, it's, you know, for respiratory illnesses, particularly on the job. The mission is especially trained, NIOSH employees is not duplicative of any government program. If they don't do it, it doesn't get done, and the benefits don't come towards those who are suffering from black lung. So, we were able to work together to get 400 of our NIOSH employees back in Morgantown. How would HHS continue to support this important work with the significantly reduced funding levels? And also, I think, uh, it's going to be folded into other things with CDC. I just don't want to lose the core mission here. This is really important."

Secretary Kennedy:

"I want to thank you for your leadership, senator, and for making sure that we got those jobs restored. And as you know, it's an important issue to me. I spent a lot of times in the coal fields. And I've spent a lot of time with people who suffered from black lung my entire life. But also, my professional career, I represented them in litigation. So, I'm deeply committed to making sure that we're doing the right thing for them.

ON THE FUTURE OF THE RURAL HEALTH PROGRAMS:

Chairman Capito:

"What would you say and how is AHA (Administration for Healthy America) going to be able to, how does that fit into and what kind of future do you see for your rural health programs?"

Secretary Kennedy:

"Well, we're very committed to rural health. Both sides of the aisle have made it clear to me that it's a priority for all of you. Prior to the Rural Health Transformation Fund, we put about 7% of Medicaid dollars went into rural hospitals and rural areas. That's about $20 billion a year. The Rural Health Transformation Fund increases that by 50% for the next 5 years, $10 billion a year. And that is to go to renovate infrastructure, rural hospitals, to retain frontline personnel to integrate telehealth and AI into their systems to revolutionize them. In addition to that, I'm always on the lookout for new ways of assisting rural healthcare."

Click HERE to watch Chairman Capito's questioning.

Click HERE to watch Chairman Capito's opening statement.

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