For senior living operators seeking COVID-19 lawsuit protections and workers earning less than $19 an hour, the next coronavirus package may deliver some welcome news. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) predicted both matters will be addressed in a final relief measure.
“I think the country needs one last boost,” the Republican from Kentucky said this week. The coming package will be assembled in his office and then negotiated with Democrats. He said the next bill must include liability protections for senior living operators and others.
“This is not just for businesses. This is for hospitals, doctors, nurses, nonprofits, universities, colleges, K-12, so that people who acted in good faith during this crisis are not confronted with a second epidemic of lawsuits in the wake of a pandemic that we’re already struggling with,” he said.
McConnell also expects the measure will include stimulus checks for lower-end wage earners.
“I think the people who have been hit the hardest are people who make about $40,000 a year or less,” he said.
He also reiterated that, as far as he is concerned, the next stimulus bill would be the last.
“This will have to be the last rescue package, because we now have a debt the size of our economy for the first time since World War II. We cannot keep doing this,” he said. The measure will likely be approved later this month, he added. The Senate returns to Washington on July 20.
