U.S. House aims to pass $3 trillion Democratic coronavirus bill rejected by Republicans

The U.S. House of Representatives is set on Friday to debate and vote on a $3 trillion Democratic bill aimed at salving the heavy human and economic toll of the coronavirus pandemic that has caused almost 85,000 U.S. deaths and shut much of the economy.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her fellow Democrats crafted the far-reaching legislation that Senate Republicans have promised will be “dead on arrival” in their chamber.

The House measure includes $500 billion in aid to state governments, another round of direct payments to individuals and families to help stimulate the ailing economy, and hazard pay to healthcare workers and others on the front line of the coronavirus pandemic.

If passed, it would double the amount of spending that Congress has authorized since March to fight the coronavirus.

But unlike the previous four coronavirus-response bills approved by Congress in recent months, this one appears ready to land on the House floor with little to no support from Republicans.

Some 36.5 million people in the United States have filed for unemployment since the crisis began, representing more than one in five workers.

Besides the coronavirus bill, the House will also try to pass a measure on Friday that would allow members for the first time to cast votes in the chamber by proxy during the pandemic. Many Republicans are also opposing that measure, saying it was essential that lawmakers vote in person in the House.

U.S. House aims to pass $3 trillion Democratic coronavirus bill rejected by Republicans, Reuters, May 15