releases: https://www.mccaskill.senate.gov/media-center/video/view/mccaskill-i-wont-support-this-bill-that-leaves-retired-miners-and-their-widows-out-in-the-cold
Data license: MIT · Data source: dwillis/congress-press
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| url | title | date | year | month | party | chamber | state | member_name | bioguide_id | domain | scraper | source | date_source | text | has_text | collected_at | updated_at |
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| https://www.mccaskill.senate.gov/media-center/video/view/mccaskill-i-wont-support-this-bill-that-leaves-retired-miners-and-their-widows-out-in-the-cold | McCaskill: ‘I won't support this bill that leaves retired miners and their widows out in the cold’ | 2016-12-12 | 2016 | 2016-12 | Democrat | House | MO | Claire McCaskill | M001170 | www.mccaskill.senate.gov | legacy | As 16,300 retired American coal miners and their families face a loss of healthcare and pensions promised to them, Republican leaders in the U.S. House and Senate have refused to act on a bipartisan plan to address the crisis. Now time has run out, and U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill today announced she will vote against Congress’ final legislation this year—a government spending bill—after Republican leaders refused to include the bipartisan Miners Protection Act in the legislation. McCaskill cited a letter she received from Billy Hull, a retired coal miner with nearly 30 years working at the Peabody Coal Power Mine near Montrose, Missouri. Mr. Hull wrote to McCaskill earlier this year, saying in part: “My wife Earlene is a 2 time cancer survivor and I suffered a stroke in 2012. If we lose our benefits it will be hard for us to afford our medicine cost. Due to the bankruptcy of both Peabody Coal Co. and the Patriot Coal Company the Patriot VEBA fund will be exhausted in late 2016 leaving us without pension and healthcare benefits…” “Here’s the question Americans should always be asking every member of Congress: who are you fighting for?” McCaskill said. “Billy Hull is who I’m fighting for. Passing a bipartisan fix for these miners would mean they won’t have to spend the holidays terrified of losing their healthcare. Missouri’s own Harry Truman—whose Senate seat I hold today—made a promise to these coal miners when he was President. I’m fighting to keep his promise. “I’ve been hearing Republican leaders in the U.S. House complain that they’ve already left Washington, D.C. to get home early for Christmas—so the government funding bill they approved and sent to the Senate, though it only includes a 4-month extension for these miners’ healthcare, will just have to be good enough,” McCaskill added. “Well, I don’t know who these U.S. House Republicans are fighting for, but it’s not working Americans like Billy Hull and the thousands like him whose blood, sweat, and tears powered our nation for generations, and yet don’t have the peace of mind that those members of the U.S. House are blessed with.” On December 31, thousands of retired miners and their widows are scheduled to lose their health insurance. Congressional Republicans included a four-month extension of this insurance in the spending bill—barely giving the miners another month of coverage before they would receive a 90-day notice of cancellation. McCaskill is pushing for certainty for these retirees and their families with the permanent health insurance solutions in the Miners Protection Act, so they aren’t facing the loss of their insurance every few months. McCaskill also highlighted President-elect Donald Trump’s repeated statements of support for America’s coal miners, and called on him to urge Republican leaders in the U.S. House and Senate to address the pending crisis. Two years ago, McCaskill was the only member of the Missouri Congressional delegation to vote against a sprawling, $1 trillion end-of-year spending package. Tucked into that “omnibus” spending bill was a provision allowing for deep cuts to retiree benefits for 32,000 Missourians participating in the Central States Pension Plan. McCaskill is a strong supporter and cosponsor of the Keep Our Pension Promises Act, which would repeal the law that allows for massive pension cuts. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |