December 11, 2021
Dear Friends,
As Congress prepares to head home for the holiday season, our work to support you and your family is far from over. With that in mind, I want to make sure you have the latest updates and information coming from Washington DC.
Combatting COVID and the new omicron variant
As I discussed in last week’s newsletter, the new omicron variant continues to spread across the world and nation. To combat this threat, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) approved booster shots of the Pfizer vaccine to 17 and 18-year-olds. A number of sites across the Capital Region are available by appointment or for walk-in.
- Crossgates Mall mass vaccination site is open for walk-ins and by appointment Monday to Saturday from 8:00AM – 6:30PM and Sundays from 8:00AM – 12:00PM.
- Certain CVS Pharmacy locations are offering Pzifer and Moderna boosters by appointment, including locations inside Target. Appointments can be made here.
- County-run vaccination sites are also available. Check out the links below for more updates on locations in your county:
Getting vaccinated remains the best way of keeping you and your loved ones safe during this pandemic. I encourage everyone to speak with their healthcare provider about getting the vaccine today.
Ensuring you and your family #GetCovered
The ACA Open Enrollment period is open until January 15, 2022, but you must be enrolled by December 15th in order to have a coverage start date of January 1, 2022.
Thanks to our American Rescue Plan, the median deductible in the ACA marketplace has decreased to $50 and four out of five consumers can now find a quality health coverage plan for $10 or less per month.
All the plans on nystateofhealth.ny.gov are comprehensive and cover doctor’s visits, prescription drugs, emergencies, and hospitalizations. Consumers can get free assistance in signing up for coverage and talk through plan options with trained professionals by calling the HealthCare.gov Call Center at 1-800-318-2596 or visiting the Get Covered Connector.
Defending Democracy for the American people
Lastly, this week the House voted to pass the Protecting Our Democracy Act a comprehensive package of reforms that would strengthen America’s democratic institutions and ensure no future president—regardless of political party—can act as if they are above the law.
This legislation:
- Prevents presidential abuses including eliminating abuse of pardon power and suspending the statute of limitations for any federal offense committed by a sitting president or vice president
- Improves transparency and accountability of the Executive Branch by strengthening congressional oversight of presidential Emergency Declarations; limiting political interference in criminal and civil enforcement matters; and promoting efficient civil presidential transitions
- Protects elections by ensuring evidence of foreign interference is reported to the FBI and working to prevent foreign interference in elections altogether
For more updates and information, follow along on my social media accounts (@RepPaulTonko). In the meantime, I’ll continue to keep you up to date on these and other efforts in Washington that will have powerful lasting effects on our Capital Region and beyond.
As always, thank you for reading.
Your friend,
![https://tonko.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/Thumbnails/35a628c4-c4ec-4b4d-ab6e-6e41902c78cb.jpg](https://tonko.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/Thumbnails/35a628c4-c4ec-4b4d-ab6e-6e41902c78cb.jpg)