WACO, Texas — U.S. Senator John Cornyn visited the Family Health Center in Waco Wednesday to thank health care employees for their work during the coronavirus pandemic. He also saw firsthand how the CARES Act, a coronavirus relief bill he supported in March, helps them combat the pandemic in Waco.
After his visit with health care workers, Cornyn toured the facility with Family Health Center CEO Dr. Jackson Griggs to learn about the ways the Federally Qualified Health Center has utilized funding from the CARES Act to help those in the area.
After the tour, Cornyn held a press conference with Dr. Griggs, Mayor Pro Tem Andrea Barefield of Waco, Judge Scott Felton of McLennan County, President Dr. Linda Livingstone of Baylor University and Chief of Staff Kyle DeBeer of Waco ISD. They each spoke to how they have used CARES Act funds to benefit the Waco community.
The senator mentioned a push for additional funds. There has been a lot of back and forth on both sides of the aisle on Capitol Hill on providing more relief. Cornyn said they reached an impasse until recently when the concern of post office funding came up.
"It sounds like the house is going to move a bill very soon and if they do we will add to it some of the most popular consensus items, like direct payments to individuals, the PPP extension and other elements that really frankly are consensus solutions to the problems," Cornyn said.
Cornyn said if people are serious about coming up with another relief package, they should be able to do it sometime next week.
6 News also spoke with Cornyn about back to school. Baylor University students will return to campus and Waco ISD has in-person schooling scheduled for September 8. When it comes to outbreak concerns, Cornyn said the virus is not going away. He hoped for a vaccine before the end of the year but said it will probably go to the most vulnerable people. He said he thinks we will be able to manage them and are in a better place than we have been.
"We're just gonna have to learn to live with it; which means that there are going to be some hot spots when people don't socially distance, don't mask and don't do the things we all know now we need to do," Cornyn said.
Cornyn announced Wednesday that various entities in Waco so far have been allocated $78,483,865 in federal coronavirus relief resources from Congress.
So far, Cornyn has worked to secure $78 million in funding for the Waco area, which includes:
- City of Waco: $7.7 million
- Waco Police Department: $161,078
- PPE, thermometers, and related supplies
- Waco Police Department: $161,078
- McLennan County: $2,383,865
- Waco ISD: $5.9 million
- 1,725 Chromebooks
- 1,100 mobile hotspots
- Instructional materials for at-home learning
- Equipment for curbside meal distribution
- Social distancing signage
- Public Transportation: $8 million
- Waco Regional Airport: $18,091,301
- Job retention, improved infrastructure, renovations
- Waco & McLennan County Rural Transit Systems: $7,950,262
- Supports annual ridership of more than 1.2 million
- Waco Regional Airport: $18,091,301
- Waco Airport: $18.1 million
- Local Health Care Facilities: $20.7 million
- Heart of Texas Community Health Center, Inc.: $3,087,882
- Outdoor clinics for testing and treatment, including 6,703 COVID tests
- PPE, including 13,500 gowns, 3,500 surgical masks, 13,050 N95 masks, 130,050 face shields, 27,000 gloves
- Enhanced IT infrastructure for telehealth capacity at 15 sites
- Fulfillment of 10,000 prescriptions by mailing or contactless pharmacy services
- 10,854 hours of paid COVID leave for vulnerable or exposed staff
- Heart of Texas Community Health Center, Inc.: $3,087,882
- Local Colleges & Universities: $15.7 million
- Baylor University: $10,777,489
- Provided 2,697 students with $5,394,000 in CARES Act Emergency Aid
- Baylor University: $10,777,489
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