Senator Blumenthal: Week in Review 10/24/25-10/31/2025
Fighting for Americans’ Access to Affordable Health Care
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) spoke on the Senate Floor calling out Republicans for refusing to join Democrats in protecting affordable health care by extending Affordable Care Act (ACA) premium tax credits.
Last week, more than 15,000 residents across Connecticut received letters warning of expected health insurance premium increases for 2026. If Republicans continue to refuse to come to the table and work with Democrats on extending the ACA tax credits, millions of people will suffer as premiums rise to incomprehensible levels.
“We’re in the midst of a health care crisis…The American people know that this crisis is real and urgent, because they know if you don’t have your health, you don’t have anything. That old saying epitomizes the importance of health care when it affects our children, who can’t get health care for themselves, our seniors, who also depend on others, and everyday Americans across the country, who are at their kitchen tables tonight, or workplaces, with their families, wondering when will it happen?” said Blumenthal. “Everybody needs health care, and it should be regarded as a human right. And we face an imminent and real and present crisis right now for millions of Americans who will no longer be able to afford health care insurance, beginning in days or weeks, because premiums are skyrocketing.”
In his remarks, Blumenthal highlighted the stories of Connecticut residents facing astronomical health insurance premium increases.
“For example, a couple in their 60s, living in Hartford, Connecticut, our capital, making a hundred thousand dollars a year, will go from paying $260.83 to $2,614.60. That’s for the same plan,” Blumenthal said. “A family of four living in Hartford, making $159,767, roughly $160,000 a year, the average salary for a family of four in our state would be forced to pay $1,159.52 more. They go from $796.65 this year to $1,956.17 next year. I don’t know how they can afford it. And the simple answer is probably they can’t, and that family will be at risk of financial catastrophe without health care insurance coverage.”
A video of Blumenthal’s speech is available here.
Blumenthal further called out President Trump and congressional Republicans for the looming health care crisis on Twitter/X.
“With health insurance premiums doubling or even tripling, Trump & Republicans are making CT families & Americans nationwide choose between affordable health care or putting food on the table. It’s cruel & unnecessary & will undoubtedly cost people their health & their lives,” wrote Blumenthal on Twitter/X.
Blumenthal highlighted the story of a Connecticut constituent who is suffering from the health care crisis created by President Trump and congressional Republicans on Twitter/X.
“Republicans would like you to believe that we can deal with the health care crisis they’ve created ‘later.’ For my constituents like Jessica, ‘later’ isn’t an option,” wrote Blumenthal with an accompanying video on Twitter/X.
Blumenthal joined U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Indiana State Senator and Minority Leader Shelli Yoder to discuss how the impending health care crisis caused by Republicans will impact families across the country. The Senators called on President Trump and Congressional Republicans to work with Democrats on a bipartisan solution that would extend the credits, keep costs from skyrocketing, and reopen the government.
“What we face here is a monster. It is an absolutely scary specter of Americans losing health care, and if you don’t think that’s scary, you should talk to the every-day American—whether it’s in Indiana or Connecticut—who worries about putting food on the table, paying the rent or mortgage, giving their kids clothing, and now, potentially doubling and tripling their premiums. They can’t afford it. It’s that simple. And so, there’s an urgency here—Americans can’t afford to get sick on Donald Trump’s timetable,” said Blumenthal.
Calling for Protections to SNAP Benefits
Blumenthal issued the following statement after federal courts ordered the Trump Administration to continue providing some benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) during the government shutdown:
“While I welcome this court order, it’s only a temporary stop gap— a band aid on a deeper, gaping wound. Millions of Americans are struggling to put food on the table— a harsh reality that President Trump has abjectly failed to recognize, and Republicans have made worse by refusing to work with Democrats on reopening the government and providing access to health care. The Administration is forcing Americans to make unconscionable choices, like whether to feed a hungry child or to take them to a doctor for medical treatment. Americans see through this cruelly malign strategy— inflicting pain to maximize political pressure. They’re using our most vulnerable Americans as political pawns.”
Expanding Social Security Benefits for Seniors
Blumenthal along with U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), and U.S. Representative Nikki Budzinski (D-IL) introduced the bicameral Boosting Benefits and COLAs for Seniors Act, legislation to protect and expand Social Security benefits for older adults. As Social Security benefits have failed to accurately account for rising costs and inflation, the Boosting Benefits and COLAs for Seniors Act makes necessary changes to the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) formula, better supporting older Americans who rely on Social Security benefits. This year’s COLA was announced last week as 2.8 percent—a number that three out of four Americans aged 50 and older say is not enough to keep up with rising prices.
“This overdue measure makes necessary adjustments to Social Security benefits—more accurately accounting for rising prices and inflation—to better support older Americans,” said Blumenthal. “Our nation’s seniors are struggling to afford basic necessities like food, medication, and clothing, and the overall cost of living index may not reflect their particular needs. This legislation ensures that older Americans have the support they deserve to live with dignity.”
The Boosting Benefits and COLAs for Seniors Act directs the Social Security Administration to adjust benefits based on the Consumer Price Index for Americans aged 62 or older (CPI-E), whereas current benefits are based off the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners (CPI-W). The CPI-E takes into account more of the costs incurred by older Americans, such as medical expenses—making it more a more reflective index to use when calculating benefits.
The full text of the bill can be found here.
Slamming Trump’s Assault on Voting Rights
Blumenthal spoke on the Senate Floor slamming the Trump Administration’s continued efforts to suppress voters and attack the right to vote itself—including rigging election maps, intimidating election officials, and undermining the Voting Rights Act. Blumenthal’s remarks come as voters head to the polls on November 4th.
“What has always separated America from other nations around the world is the right to vote. But as we stand here, this cherished right is coming under attack, because in 2026, we can expect a continuation of what is happening in these last nine months—that the Trump Administration is doing everything it can to undermine the confidence in elections and sow distrust in the election process,” said Blumenthal. “It’s like a spider weaving a web. The Trump Administration has crafted multiple strands when combined together, attack and change the voting landscape in a way that America will not recognize. Trump is attempting to strip power from the states, consolidate it for himself, and subvert the will of the people. It is systematic. It’s strategic. And it is deeply and urgently serious.”
Blumenthal called upon his colleagues and the American public to decidedly stand against President Trump’s attack on voters and to promote fair and free elections, saying “Now, each of these individual actions of anti-election assault is serious and significant, but each action needs to be seen together as something deeper and broader. It is the sum and substance of totalitarianism. Not at some distant point in the future, not a vague storm cloud on the horizon, but the destruction of democracy here and now. As we approach our democracy's 250th anniversary, we can't afford the luxury of defeatism or despair or complacency.”
A video of Blumenthal’s full remarks can be found here.
Blumenthal Bulletin
Blumenthal introduced legislation protecting children from AI chatbots.
Blumenthal spoke at a press conference on the dangers of Big Tech’s exploitative AI chatbots.
Blumenthal questioned White House ballroom contractors on their participation in the construction project and the terms of their involvement.
Blumenthal joined advocates from Veterans Service Organizations in slamming the dangerous narrative that VA’s disability compensation process is ‘too generous’ at a hearing.
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