There is no doubt that 2025 has been a trying year. As I reflect on this year, I am grateful for the resilience of Oregonians and the work we were able to accomplish despite the Trump Administration’s ongoing budget cuts and harmful priorities. Below are a few updates about what I’ve been working on this month.

Continuing the Fight for Access to Affordable Health Care

Last Wednesday four House Republicans broke with their caucus and agreed that the House should vote on renewing the Affordable Care Act premium tax credits for three years, almost identical to the amendment I submitted to the GOP budget bill during the Republican shutdown. These credits help millions of Americans afford health insurance, and they are currently set to expire at the end of the month. The petition has reached 218 signatures, meaning that Speaker Johnson and the GOP can no longer ignore the voices of the American people. There will be a vote when we get back to the Capitol in early January.

Protect Children - Keep the Government Out of the Exam Room

Decisions about children’s health care should be made by parents, patients, and their health care providers, not by politicians. Republicans put two bills on the floor this month that villainize trans children and even provide for incarcerating their doctors and parents in federal prison for up to ten years. I stood up each time to combat this harmful rhetoric against proven life-saving care. Criminalizing health care access as millions are about to have their payments skyrocket says more about this administration than it does about the dedicated doctors and nurses who are doing their jobs.

Nurses ARE Professionals

Nurses are a critical part of our health care system. Despite the importance of and need for more nurses, the president is trying to claim nurses that are not “professionals,” which would limit their access to nursing education. As a Co-Chair of the bipartisan Nursing Caucus, I helped lead 140 members of Congress in fighting against this attempt to reclassify nursing as a non-professional degree program. This reclassification would mean more debt for nursing students and exacerbate an existing workforce shortage.

Last week I was honored to receive the National League for Nursing’s Public Policy Advancement Award. I will continue to stand up for our health care heroes, and to fight for the educational opportunities they deserve.

Standing Against DHS Abuses  

Celebrating the Release of Jackie Merlos from ICE Custody

Earlier this month I spent an evening with Jackie Merlos to celebrate her release from ICE detention and her reunion with her four young children. Jackie never should have been detained, and I will continue to work with my colleagues in the Oregon delegation to fight ICE’s cruel policies that target and separate immigrant families.

Rescue Helicopter Returned

Kristi Noem, in trying to clear the way for her cruel mass ICE detention facility in Newport, took away the central Oregon Coast’s rescue helicopter and put the lives of Oregonians at risk. Thankfully, this month the delegation helped secure the return of the helicopter to the central coast, where it belongs.

Defending Portland

Let me be clear: we do not need or want an ICE detention facility in Portland. There have been rumors based on job postings online that DHS is angling to create a detention facility in NW Oregon. I, along with my colleagues in the Oregon delegation, demanded answers from Donald Trump and Kristi Noem. I will not rest until Oregonians get the answers they deserve.

Standing Up to Authoritarianism

This month a federal court found that the president exceeded his authority to cancel (BRIC) grants, a congressionally approved FEMA disaster mitigation program. These grants fund disaster preparedness projects across the country, including one at the Columbia Memorial Hospital project in Astoria. Defunding life-saving emergency preparedness programs is short-sighted and will not make our communities safer. I will continue to advocate for programs that protect Oregonians.                                  

My top priorities remain unchanged, and I will continue to fight for you in the new year.

ICYMI

• My legislation on protecting coastal communities from marine debris has passed the House and the Senate and is on track to become law.
• I met with anti-hunger advocates, behavior health specialists, and housing and refugee nonprofit organizations that are doing more with less.
• I fought for grid-strengthening projects that would lower energy costs for Oregonians.
• I spoke out against the harms of dismantling the Department of Education.
• I advocated for protecting workers and families from known carcinogens.
• I urged my colleagues to give local leaders the tools they need to protect essential ecosystems.